A Potter's True Love
by Colt01
Summary: True love never did run smooth...this certainly was true in the case of James Potter who wanted to win the heart of one Lily Evans. This is a story of the lives of two people whose experiences were filled with drama, friendship, war, passion, and of course – undying love. How will they overcome the obstacles that Lord Voldemort has put in their path? Happy ending! James/Lily
1. The Beginning

**_A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE_**

 ** _Description:_** ** _True love never did run smooth . . . this certainly was true in the case of James Potter who wanted to win the heart of one Lily Evans. This is a story of the lives of two people whose experiences were filled with drama, friendship, war, passion, and of course – undying love. How will they overcome the obstacles that Lord Voldemort has put in their path? Can they save their son from the dark shroud of a prophecy? Happy ending! James/Lily_**

 ** _AN 1_** ** _: I have always wanted to explore some of the characters of the Harry Potter universe in detail, two of whom were James Potter and Lily Evans. We have heard so much about the First Voldemort War, but we don't really know much about it, so this is my take on it. While doing so, I managed to explore many other characters who I believe had great potential. This is what this story is about. It begins with James and Lily starting Hogwarts and ends with the defeat of Lord Voldemort. Enjoy!_**

 ** _AN 2_** ** _: I know that James' parents in canon are Fleamont and Euphemia Potter. I can give you a long list about why Charlus and Dorea fit the role better, but you can read that in the story itself. Please don't point out to me that they aren't James' parents as per the Pottermore website. I already know. I just can't write a story with those names or with knowing nothing about their backgrounds. My apologies to JKR._**

 ** _AN 3_** ** _: As in all my stories, James and Lily are five years older than in canon. They were born in 1955._**

 ** _Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to JK Rowling._**

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _Chapter 1 – The Beginning_**

 _26th July, 1966_

 _Potter Manor, Nottinghamshire, England_

Eleven-year-old James Potter was bouncing in his seat as he sat on the porch swing that overlooked the expansive grounds that surrounded Potter Manor. It was the twenty-sixth of July, and it was finally the day his Hogwarts letter would arrive. He had been waiting for this moment his whole life and he was too excited to stay indoors. Even flying on his broom was not interesting enough today.

After waiting impatiently for more than twenty minutes, he spotted something in the sky far away. He squinted his eyes, adjusting his glasses as he tried to identify it. The dot was growing bigger as it neared and he whooped. Not able to contain himself, he began running with excitement as he climbed the front steps of the manor two at a time and quickly entered through the large front doors.

"My Hogwarts letter is on its way!" screamed James excitedly. "Mum, Dad, come on! It's here!"

Dorea Potter groaned into her cup of tea as her husband chuckled behind the newspaper. She had just taken a sip of her drink when a blur rushed past her and attacked the person behind the newspaper.

"Dad, come _on_!" said James earnestly. "The owl should be here any minute."

"Alright, alright!" said Charlus in exasperation. "Jamie, the owl isn't going to fly away without delivering the letter. Calm down."

"You don't know that!" James said hysterically. "Mum said that if I make the owl wait, I won't be accepted into Hogwarts! Now come _on_!"

James finally gave up on his father and dashed out of the room. Charlus glared at his wife who was trying her best not to laugh.

"Anything you would like to say to that, dear?"

Dorea chuckled lightly. "I have no idea what you're talking about," she said smoothly.

"Why am I not surprised," replied Charlus sardonically. "And here I was wondering why he loves to prank people so much. He takes after his mother and shares her love for causing chaos! Imagine how our lives would have been if we had more children."

His wife burst out laughing as she pinched his cheek affectionately. "The best part is that no one suspects me for it, do they?" she asked, her grey eyes twinkling in mirth. "After all, I'm a former Slytherin and we supposedly hate pranks."

Charlus snorted at the irony. Their conversation was interrupted when their son again ran into the room, clutching a letter.

"Yes! I got it! I got the letter!" yelled James happily. "Can we go to Diagon Alley today, Mum? Please? I really want to finish my school shopping as soon as possible. I can't wait to get my own wand so that I can prank –"

"James!" admonished his father sternly.

"Practice, I said practice!"

"Uh huh."

Dorea's lips twitched in amusement. "I guess we could go, it's a weekend anyway."

James ran up to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, Mum," he replied excitedly. "I'll go start packing."

Charlus chuckled as he put his arm around his wife. "The manor is going to be so quiet without him, isn't it?"

Dorea rested her head on his shoulder as she snuggled into his hold. "Yeah," she said quietly. "I can't believe he is old enough to go to Hogwarts. Time sure has flown by."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _Black Townhouse, 12, Grimmauld Place, London_

Eleven-year-old Sirius Black clutched the letter to his chest, grinning happily. He had finally received his Hogwarts letter. It was time for him to go to school. More importantly, he could escape his mother. Even though he was excited, part of his was worried. For one, he was adamant that he didn't want to be like his mother and cousins. That meant not being sorted into Slytherin like the rest of the Blacks had been for generations. The Blacks always considered themselves cunning and resourceful for having been Slytherins for centuries, so how would they react if he were not sorted there?

How would his mother react if he were to be sorted into Gryffindor instead? That would certainly drive her insane.

"Siri?"

Sirius turned towards the door, only to see his nine-year-old brother, still in his pyjama pants, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

"How come you're up so early?" asked Regulus curiously.

Sirius grinned as he showed the letter to his brother. "It's my Hogwarts letter, Riggie, don't you remember that it was supposed to come today morning?"

Regulus' eyes lit up as he snatched the letter from his brother's hand and read through it. But his smile slipped as a frown formed on his face. "You're not going to do something stupid just to make Mother mad, are you?"

The eleven-year-old boy sighed as he sat down on his expansive bed. His brother followed suit, placing a comforting hand on his brother's shoulders.

"I don't want to be like them, Reggie," whispered Sirius bitterly. "I don't want to end up like Mum or Bella. I'm so tired of them constantly putting me down, with Mother screaming at me every second she can spare. And Father . . . he doesn't stop her at all. I want to be free of all this madness. Maybe if I'm sorted into Gryffindor . . ."

"Sirius, you can't!" cried Regulus hysterically. "Mother will go crazy, you know that! Why do you want to provoke her?"

"I'm not like you, Reggie," frowned Sirius. "I don't think I can handle being in Slytherin with all their pureblood mania and politics. I just want to have fun."

Regulus frowned. He didn't understand why his brother was always acting out. Their parents held a strong opinion about Muggleborns and made their dislike of them quite clear. He understood parts of it, though. And he could also sympathise with his brother who always took the brunt of their mother's anger. Putting his small arms around his brother's form, he continued, "Everything will be okay, I promise," he whispered.

Sirius smiled sadly as he hugged his little brother closer. He hoped so, anyway. He would not be going to school alone. No, he would sadly have company in the form of his cousin Narcissa; and his mother loved to compare him with his cousins. Well, except Cousin James . . . now _he_ would certainly be in Gryffindor. Hmm . . .

"SIRIUS!" screeched Walburga.

Both brothers cringed as they heard their mother's high-pitched voice. Getting up quickly, they walked down the stairs from the second-floor landing. They would have to wash up quickly and Floo to Black Manor to meet the rest of the family. Sirius grimaced; he really, _really_ did not want to meet Bellatrix early in the morning but it wasn't as if he would get out of it. As he listened to his mother's talk with one ear open, he wondered if getting sorted into Gryffindor and being his own person was better than being just a good pureblood heir to satisfy his parents.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _Evans' household, Cokeworth, England_

"– there are plenty of career opportunities available after school, Mr Evans," explained Professor McGonagall patiently. "It depends from person to person, really. Some attend university for higher education or apprentice under a qualified witch or wizard. Others, who do not want to pursue higher education, apply for jobs. I assure you that we will help your daughter find her place after school. We have a separate counselling session for that."

"We're really happy about Lily being magical, Professor McGonagall," said Rosemary Evans, smiling. "For so long, we thought there might be something wrong and –"

"Mrs Evans, your daughter is perfectly normal and please don't presume otherwise. As for school supplies and tuition –"

"Yes, about that," interrupted Andrew Evans, coughing slightly and looking apologetic for interrupting her. "Lily, Petunia, could you please excuse us for a minute? We would like to talk to Professor McGonagall in private."

Lily gave her parents a curious look and nodded as she left. Petunia's cheeks, having been burning red the whole time, simply gave her parents scathing looks as she too stomped out. Rosemary sighed as she watched her oldest daughter. She would have to talk to Petunia soon.

"Yes, Mr Evans?" inquired Professor McGonagall.

Andrew took a deep breath. "Professor, as much I would love to send Lily to your school, I'm afraid we simply can't afford it. You said that it's a private school, and the very best in your world as compared to others in Britain, but –"

The stern woman gave a hint of a smile. Minerva could understand where the man was coming from. This was quite a contrast to other Muggleborn families where the Muggle parents were very leery or downright hateful of magic. Andrew and Rosemary Evans genuinely wanted their daughter to learn magic and felt that their financial problems would hinder their daughter's education. It was touching.

"Not to worry, Mr Evans," explained Professor McGonagall. "I know that Hogwarts tuition is expensive, but we have scholarships to compensate for those who can't afford it. We can't lose out on the best students, now, can we? And from what young Miss Evans has told me, she is a powerful witch for having been controlling her powers for quite a few years now, and let me tell you, even most children who are born and raised in the magical world can't do that. The Hogwarts Scholarship Fund will cover most of your expenses."

"Thank you," said Andrew, breathing a sigh of relief. He didn't want to mention to the woman that they already knew about magic; Lily's friend Severus Snape apparently had explained it to her more than a year ago. They hadn't really believed it then, but McGonagall's appearance and display had certainly proved it. How else would she have made a cat appear in the living room out of thin air if not for magic?

"Please make it to Charing Cross Road in London along with your daughter on the thirty first of July," said McGonagall briskly. "I'll be accompanying you and the rest of the first year Muggleborns for shopping. If you need to contact me, please write a letter and post it to this address. Wizarding Mail Delivery will forward it to Hogwarts by owl. I shall see myself out."

After saying goodbye to Professor McGonagall, Lily practically skipped around the house before she begged her mother to give her permission to visit her friend Severus. Ten minutes later, she was chatting excitedly with her friend.

"My parents have agreed!" said Lily happily. "Professor McGonagall will be taking us to Diagon Alley soon. Did you get your letter?"

Severus Snape smiled faintly as he looked at his friend. He was happy that Lily was so excited. To be fair, he was jumping with joy on the inside too.

"How did your father take the news?" asked Lily in concern.

Snape grimaced, not wanting to talk about his parents in front of Lily. His face burned in embarrassment, wondering what he should tell her.

"Your parents aren't arguing anymore, are they?"

"Oh, they're arguing," said Snape. He picked up a fist-full of leaves and began tearing them apart. "But it won't be long before I'm gone, so it'll be fine."

Truthfully, Severus didn't understand why his mother put up with Tobias Snape. No, he wouldn't call that man by anything other than his name; certainly not by the term of F _ather_. Snape _loathed_ the man. Tobias constantly fought with his wife and shouted at his son, and sometimes even beat them up as well. If he hated magic so much, why didn't he just leave? In fact, his mother was a witch! Why couldn't she use magic to protect him from his father's wrath? Tobias was, after all, _just a_ _Muggle_.

But she didn't do it. She never raised her wand against Tobias Snape. Severus had no idea why. While he loved his mother, he couldn't help but feel that she was weak.

 _I will never be weak like her_ , he promised himself. It disgusted him to see happy boys his age at school who were spoiled by their parents. Well, not in the traditional sense. No one in their town had enough money to spoil their kids rotten, but it still burned him up on the inside to see happy families when his own was horrible in comparison.

"Severus?"

Snape's mouth twitched into a smile as she said his name.

"Will I be treated differently because I'm a Muggleborn? Does it make a difference?"

Snape hesitated for a few seconds. "No," he lied. "No, it makes no difference."

Lily smiled in satisfaction. "Good."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Mum, why do I have to do this?" whined James. "My glasses are fine! I can see perfectly, look!"

"Jamie, the only reason we got you those spectacles was because the Healer couldn't correct your eyesight three years ago," explained Dorea Potter as she walked briskly in the lobby of St Mungo's. "Now that you're old enough, we can get rid of that contraption."

James sighed. It wasn't like he particularly liked his glasses either, but he really didn't like anyone coming close to his eyes. It freaked him out. The time he had gotten his glasses were bad enough, but a wizard pointing his wand right near his eye? That was bloody terrifying! He quietly followed his mother up the flight of stairs in the massive building that housed St Mungo's Hospital. They finally reached their destination and James was fidgeting. Dorea placed a comforting hand on his shoulders.

"James, relax," she said softly. "I know you're uncomfortable, but he's not going to poke you in the eye with his wand. It's a very simple procedure. It'll be over in ten minutes."

When James still looked morose, Dorea smiled and tickled her son who giggled. "Look at it this way," she said mischievously. "Now we can see those beautiful hazel eyes without glasses. You look so cute without them, don't you think?"

James blushed at his mother's praise as he stammered. His mother laughed; she enjoyed teasing him, leaving him a wreck.

"We're ready, Mr Potter," said the Healer briskly. "Please lie down on the bed and close your eyes."

 _Gryffindors charge ahead,_ thought James as he lay down. Anything else was fine, but why his _eyes_? The Healer covered his eyes with a damp cloth – no doubt drenched in some sort of potion – and pretty soon, James felt drops falling on his eyelids. The amazing part was that the potion would get absorbed and fall directly in his eyes, even with his eyelids closed!

The Healer muttered under his breath as he waved his wand in front of James' face. Ten minutes later, he vanished the cloth that was covering James' eyes and said, "You may open your eyes now, Mr Potter."

James flinched as he slowly opened his eyes. Much to his shock, there was no pain – and he could see perfectly. His mother was smirking at him from beside his bed.

"Alright, alright, you've made your point," he muttered. "It was painless and he didn't poke me in the eye."

After the Healer left, Dorea lifted his chin and looked into his eyes. The warm hazel eyes were sparkling with mirth, now not hidden behind those glasses. Her son looked positively adorable!

"You're going to make heads turn," said Dorea in amusement, tussling his hair affectionately. "Who knows who my daughter-in-law is going to be?"

"Mum!" said James scandalized. "I'm never getting married, you know that! Girls are so – icky!"

"Of course, dear."

"They are! Never, _ever!_ "

"Whatever you say, Jamie."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _The First of September, King's Cross Station_

The large Floo system at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was a beehive of activity as the emerald green flames repeatedly sprang to life, with families walking out of the massive granite fireplace. Just like the rest, a family of four stepped out of the Floo. The couple was richly dressed and the woman kept sniffing at the crowd.

Orion Black flicked his wand, dispelling the soot that had gathered on them all. This was the problem with the public Floo system – the Ministry never maintained them properly. His sharp grey eyes loomed over his two sons, both of whom looked nervous. His oldest, Sirius, had been acting odd the past few weeks and Orion wondered what stunt the boy would pull now. In the back of his mind, he already knew it, but for the sake of his sanity, he hoped Sirius did not rebel.

Putting up with his wife would be torture otherwise.

Throwing a final glare at her oldest son, Walburga moved away, no doubt intending to talk to her brother Cygnus and his wife Druella who had Flooed in with their three daughters. Bellatrix and Andromeda were already wearing their Slytherin robes and ties, whereas Narcissa was wearing the unsorted robes that were prescribed for the first year students.

Sirius looked away from the display. His stomach felt like it was doing somersaults. He looked at his brother, but Regulus was looking around the platform curiously. Suddenly, he felt his father's hand on his shoulder. Grey eyes met grey, and much to Sirius' shock, Orion Black knelt down in front of his son.

"Sirius," said Orion in a low voice. "I know what you're planning and I want you to know that I don't approve of it."

The Black scion looked bitter but kept his silence. Orion continued as though he weren't expecting a reply from his son. "Don't think acting out like this would make your mother care for you more."

"I don't care about Mother's affections for me," said Sirius coldly. "She's made that plenty clear over the past few years. Why do you care _now_ , Father?"

Orion's eyes hardened. "I always cared," he replied, his tone slightly frigid. "Don't ever presume that I don't love you and your brother."

"But you never stopped her from belittling me either, did you? I don't know what you expect from me. I don't want to spend my life throwing parties and attending Wizengamot sessions. Maybe later, but for now, I just want to have fun! And I can never have fun if I'm in Slytherin, Father, you know I won't get along with those people. Do you think I can live with people like Cousin Bella or Lucius Malfoy?"

 _He has a point._ Orion exhaled. He really should have kept a closer eye on his wife and children, but he had not, choosing instead to be engaged in his research on magic, the family finances or politics. Walburga essentially had free reign to raise their sons as she wished, and from what he could see, she hadn't done a good job of it. Walburga constantly lived with Sirius' and Regulus' disdain for her.

"Are you going to disown me if I'm sorted into Gryffindor?"

The silent whisper brought him out of his musings. Orion's eyes widened marginally. This was the moment. He could either stand by and do nothing and watch Sirius be torn apart or he could take a stand. From the corner of his eye, he could see Regulus looking very nervous.

"While I would not approve of you not being in Slytherin – no, I would not disown you if do end up in any other House," replied Orion quietly. That one sentence was enough for Sirius whose shoulders drooped in relief. The older man frowned slightly but didn't say anything. He looked up; the permanent Tempus charm a few feet above them told that it was ten minutes to eleven. Surprising himself and his son, he hugged Sirius briefly. The eleven-year-old boy was startled; he couldn't ever remember being hugged by his parents.

"Take care of yourself," whispered Orion. "Good luck, son."

Sirius smiled faintly and turned to hug Regulus too. The younger Black did not seem to want to let his brother go, but a gentle tap on the shoulder by his father made Regulus lose the death grip. Sirius looked sideways and saw the face of his scowling mother. Not even dignifying her with a goodbye, he carried his trunk and owl cage and moved forward to board the train.

"Need some help?"

Sirius looked up, only to see the grinning face of his cousin. Relief flooded throughout his body as he finally found someone he knew – and someone he could tolerate – as he said, "It would help."

James Potter happily helped Sirius get his trunk on board as they moved to find a compartment. That was when he saw it.

"James, what happened to your glasses?" he asked curiously.

"My mother finally took me to a Healer and got my eyesight fixed," replied James, grinning. "It wasn't as bad as I thought."

"You let him near your eye?" asked Sirius, quirking an eyebrow. "I thought you couldn't stand it."

"I thought so too, but the procedure was simple. I'm pretty sure my parents kept telling me all sorts of stuff just to freak me out."

Sirius chuckled. Over the years when they had met at various social functions, he knew that his Aunt Dorea had quite a playful side, hidden by her tough exterior. She was one of the few in his family he really liked. She was technically his Great-Aunt, but due to her and Walburga having such little age gap, Dorea hadn't been conferred with the title of 'Aunt' when Pollux's children were born. Therefore, for someone like Sirius, Dorea had always been his aunt, and for her, he was her nephew. They finally found a compartment that was not already filled, but there was a first-year student, dressed in Muggle clothes, already inside. James poked his head in.

"Excuse me, but do you mind if my friend and I sit here?"

The redhead didn't even look at him but nodded silently. James frowned slightly but shrugged. He entered the compartment with Sirius and the two of then placed their trunks under their seats and owl cages on the seat opposite to them. Sitting next to each other, they began chatting.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Lily desperately tried to control her tears but she couldn't. How could Petunia call her a freak? On the day she was finally off to Hogwarts? She didn't understand why her sister was being so hateful. She could understand Petunia's frustration, but why take it out on her? Lily was innocent in this! Maybe if she could talk to Professor Dumbledore . . .

No, it wasn't possible and she knew it. What irked her most was that she and her sister had been best friends before all this happened. How would she ever mend their relationship? The compartment door opened again and she saw out of the corner of her eye that it was Severus, already dressed in his new school robes. Lily had yet to get changed; her mind was still on Petunia's hateful words.

"I don't want to talk to you."

"Why not?" asked Snape, surprised.

"Turney h-hates me," sniffed Lily. "Because we read D-Dumbledore's letter."

"So what?"

Lily glared at him, looking at him with a deep look of dislike.

" _So what?_ She's my sister!"

"She's only a –" _Muggle,_ he finished in his mind but kicked himself for it. He could not say such things in front of Lily. Thankfully, his best friend had not caught on to it, still wiping her tears away.

Just when they were about to make conversation, the two boys who were sitting in the corner of the compartment beside the door laughed loudly. Snape frowned, disliking such loud noise. Couldn't they be a little sensitive? Lily was here upset, crying, and they were laughing about some stupid joke?

"– that was one of the most memorable experiences of my life," explained one of the boys. "Mum, Dad and I went to Greece this year and the witch in the hotel lobby suggested that we use Gillyweed to go exploring underwater."

Sirius' eyes lit up. "Cool! How was it?" he asked excitedly.

"Amazing!" replied James. "I have never seen anything like it. The water was crystal clear, you know? Gillyweed lasts for about an hour, and we had enough time to go exploring. Of course, Mum was reluctant at first, but Dad and I managed to –"

Snape turned out their conversation and looked visibly disgusted. Who _cares_ if the boy went on a vacation to Greece? The way in which the boy spoke about his parents was enough to make Snape's stomach churn with jealousy. He turned and looked at them.

Both boys were already dressed in their Hogwarts uniforms, just like Snape; white shirt, black trousers, tie and robes. But that was where the similarities ended. While Snape's new uniform was made of a coarse cotton material, he could see that both boys had uniforms made of high-quality silk. With the rays of sunlight streaming through the windows, he could see the gleam of the thin bands on their right ring fingers – heir rings, which many rich magical families commissioned for their children. Both boys had raven-black hair, but one of them had messy hair while the other's was curly. They looked effortlessly pretty and Snape _hated_ it.

 _Rich, snobby pureblood brats, no doubt._

"My mother wants me to be in Slytherin –"

"Mine too," grimaced Sirius.

"– but I told her that I'd rather leave and continue being home-schooled rather than be stuck in Slytherin House."

Both cousins shared a look and knew exactly what James' statement meant. Neither one of them wanted to be part of the pureblood movement that was slowly rising in the shadows. More importantly, they wanted to stay the hell away from Bellatrix Black, who they both knew would make their lives miserable.

"Then where are you heading?" grinned Sirius, though he already knew the answer.

James smirked as he lifted his arm, as though holding an invisible sword. "Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!" he said, swelling with pride as he added, "Like my dad. I really want to be like him when I grow up."

Before Sirius could reply, they heard a snort from the other side of the compartment. Lily, who had not been listening to the conversation, looked at Snape curiously. James narrowed his eyes at the boy.

"You've got a problem with that?" he asked coldly. Insulting Gryffindor was _personal_ , and it was a lot deeper than House pride.

"No," said Snape, though his sneer gave it away. "If you'd rather be brawny rather than brainy –"

"And where are you hoping to go, seeing as you're neither?" said Sirius, his tone just as frigid. Neither of them missed the veiled insult to James' father.

Lily suddenly felt the compartment heat up as the three boys glared at each other. Wanting to avoid a confrontation on the first day, Lily got up, her face flustered.

"Come on, Severus, let's find another compartment."

Snape sneered at James as he passed and the latter took the opportunity to try to trip him. "See you later, _Snivellus_ ," added Sirius loudly behind his back.

"What a jerk," muttered Sirius darkly.

James nodded, his blood still boiling.

"What a jerk," muttered Lily to her friend as they sat down in another compartment. "Did you see the way he overreacted, all because of a House? How stupid is that?"

Snape relaxed when Lily insulted the boy in the compartment and a small smile formed on his face.

"Let it go, Lily," said Snape. "We're finally off to Hogwarts!"

Lily allowed a smile to form on her face as she looked out of the window at the passing scenery.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _AN:_** ** _As you can see, there will be plenty of references to 'The Prince's Tale' from Book 7, and the memory from Book 5. I have tried to incorporate as much from canon as possible (and by canon, I mean the book, not those horrible, ridiculous, additional scenes in the last movie). Also, if you're wondering, no, there is no 'Lord Potter, Lord Black' in this. I've frankly grown tired of it and wanted to write politics in Magical Britain without it. Of course, Charlus and Orion would still be Wizengamot members. Where's the fun without it?_**

 ** _I can never stop at one chapter alone when I upload a new story. On to Chapter 2!_**

 ** _PS: I'm sorry that I haven't updated 'Saviour of Magic' yet. I promise to do it soon._**


	2. Onset of the Feud

**_Chapter 2 – Onset of the Feud_**

The train finally stopped at Hogsmeade station several hours later. Everyone on the train disembarked and the older years quickly moved away to find a seat on the various carriages that were waiting for them. The first years, however, moved away from them, following a giant of a man beckoning them over.

"First years, first years this way!" shouted Hagrid.

"He's _huge_!" whispered Lily in awe. She was not the only one who reacted as others too were whispering about Hagrid's height. The man was probably ten feet tall but that was quickly forgotten when they were lead down a path towards a lake.

"No more than four on a boat!"

The boat moved forward slowly once they were all seated and a minute later, gasps could be heard. James smiled widely as he saw Hogwarts. He had seen the castle before, but that was from Hogsmeade when he and his parents had come shopping. But never had he seen it from this angle. It was breathtaking. Lily was also mesmerised. The castle looked so – magical – with its high towers and bright lights. Her heart picked up pace and suddenly she couldn't wait to get inside. When they reached the dock, they quickly followed Hagrid who led them inside when they were greeted by Professor McGonagall. Once they were all assembled, she began.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said McGonagall. "I am Professor Minerva McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress of the school. In a few minutes, you shall pass through these doors and be sorted into your Houses. There are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. While you're here, remember that your House will be like your family. Each House shall have their own common rooms where you can interact, and dormitories for your living quarters. Good performance and behaviour will lead to points being awarded and any rule breaking will lead to loss of points. The House Cup at the end of the year will be awarded to the House that has the most points. It's quite an honour and I hope each of you will strive to uphold the values of our school."

Professor McGonagall observed the batch of first-year students. There were about three hundred students in the batch, a standard size for Hogwarts. She kept looking for any student who might cause trouble but for now, they all seemed to be well-behaved. "Follow me."

James was chatting with Sirius excitedly as they looked around the Great Hall. Lily felt goosebumps on her arms at the sheer amount of magic in the Hall. The first years were made to assemble between two long tables. Professor McGonagall picked up a sheet of parchment and said, "When I call your name, you shall come forth, I shall place the Sorting Hat on your head, and you shall be sorted into your Houses."

"Black, Narcissa."

A girl with light blond hair and brown eyes calmly walked forward and sat down on the stool. Lily watched curiously and after several seconds, much to her surprise, the brim of the hat opened wide and announced loudly, " _Slytherin!_ "

The table to the corner, near the wall, exploded in cheers as the girl confidently walked towards her new House. Her tie automatically changed from black to green and silver, and the Slytherin crest appeared on her robes.

"Black, Sirius."

Sirius was shaking slightly as he sat down on the stool. James looked at him worriedly as the hat was placed on his head. For several seconds, there was silence until finally, the hat shouted –

" _Gryffindor!_ "

Silence. Absolute silence, before James started clapping and the Gryffindor table took over, cheering loudly for their new Housemate. Lily wondered what was so special about this boy that everyone reacted like that. Nearly everyone in the hall looked surprised.

"Bones, Edger."

" _Hufflepuff!_ "

It continued, and several other students later, McGonagall announced, "Evans, Lily."

James took a good look at the girl and recognised her from the train. Suddenly he felt like ice water was poured down his front as his stomach twisted. He swallowed as he wondered why he was feeling uncomfortable. The girl – Lily – had lush dark-red hair that nearly reached her waist. She had delicate features, high cheekbones, and even from the distance, James could make out – the most vivid emerald green eyes he had ever seen.

His palms were sweaty and he fidgeted. What was wrong with him?

Lily swallowed as she slowly climbed up to the podium and sat down on the stool. The Sorting Hat was immediately lowered on her head, and suddenly, she couldn't see as it came below her eyes. She heard a voice close to her ear.

" _Hmm . . . difficult, very difficult. You have intelligence, oh my, you certainly do. Your loyalty to your family and friends is also a defining trait. You also have a thirst to prove yourself, to make your parents proud of you. While any of the four Houses will work wonders for you, I feel your biggest strength is your heart and your underlying bravery. Rowena or Salazar would have loved to have you, but you would do better in GRYFFINDOR!_ "

The cheers from the students in red and gold rang out as they clapped and cheered for her. While Lily was relieved, she was also a touch sad as she looked at her best friend who had an expressionless look on his face as she sat down at the Gryffindor table.

"Rosier, Evan."

" _Slytherin!_ "

"Fawley, Alice."

" _Gryffindor!_ "

"Dearborn, Caradoc."

" _Ravenclaw!_ "

"Macdonald, Mary."

" _Gryffindor!_ "

"McKinnon, Marlene."

" _Gryffindor!_ "

The girl with dirty blond hair happily sat down next to Lily.

"Potter, James."

James took a deep breath as he walked up the stool with his back straight. He sat down and the hat was lowered on his head.

" _Ah, another Potter. Let's see, shall we? Hmm … you don't lack intelligence, but you don't study only for knowledge. You're very ambitious and you do possess a cunning nature, so Slytherin would do. I can sense potential for immense loyalty; Helga would kill to have you. But I doubt anything can overpower your determination and pure will. Good luck, young Potter. Your ancestor will no doubt be proud of you. Keep Godric's legacy alive in GRYFFINDOR!"_

Thunderous applause greeted him as James happily walked towards the Gryffindor table. He sat down next to Sirius who grinned at him. The sorting continued for several more minutes.

"Snape, Severus."

Snape walked up the podium and just a couple of seconds after the hat was placed upon his head, the Sorting Hat cried out, " _Slytherin_!"

The newly sorted Severus Snape shot another look at Lily who was sitting opposite to James Potter as he walked over to the Slytherin table. A third-year student by the name of Lucius Malfoy patted him on the back as the rest of his Housemates cheered.

Once the sorting was finished, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore stood up. "Let the feast begin," he announced.

James was happily talking to his new friends as he enjoyed the delicious food prepared by the Hogwarts house-elves when he felt someone ruffle his hair. Curious hazel eyes turned behind him, only to spot an amused look on the face of an older student.

"Nice to see you made it to Gryffindor, Jamie," said Frank Longbottom, grinning at the younger boy. "For a moment there, I was worried."

James' face coloured in embarrassment as everyone around him laughed at the nickname. "Frank, you promised not to call me that in public!" he whispered accusingly.

Thirteen-year-old Frank laughed as he ruffled James' hair again. "Sorry, kiddo, but you'll always be little Jamie to me. Let me know if you need any help, alright? Got to go."

Sirius smirked at James' beet red face. "Be glad that I never called you that in public," he whispered.

"Trust me, I'm grateful."

"Jamie," added Sirius playfully, only to get smacked on the shoulder as he and the people around them laughed.

Lily was having the time of her life. She was talking to several of her new classmates when suddenly, the food on their plates vanished, only to be replaced by desserts. Her jaw dropped in shock at seeing so many different varieties of ice cream and sweets. Twenty minutes later, Professor Dumbledore stood up as the food once again vanished, leaving the golden cutlery clean.

"A very good evening to you all," said Dumbledore, beaming at them. "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. As always I have a few start-of-term announcements. The first years are to know that the forest in the grounds is out of bounds. Duelling in the corridors is also restricted and a few of our older students should know that by now as well. There are several banned items, which you can read at your leisure, the list which has been affixed, I'm told, to our caretaker Mr Filch's office door."

He surveyed everyone under his half-moon spectacles as he finally said, "That's all for tonight. Off you trot!"

James and Sirius were still talking quietly as they followed the Gryffindor prefect when they were rudely interrupted by –

"Well, well," said Bellatrix snidely. "If it isn't the traitor of the family."

James and Sirius stiffened as everyone else in the group looked at the newcomer curiously. Lily watched as the beautiful – and frankly scary – older girl approach the two boys she had shared her compartment with.

"Bella," said James cordially as he stepped in front of Sirius slightly. "What can we do for you?"

"I assume you're the one to poison his mind, James?" sneered Bellatrix. Her attention shifted to the Black heir. "You'll be lucky not to be disowned tonight."

Sirius remained calm as he observed his cousin coldly. "I don't need luck, Bella. Father already knows about this and I assure you, he has no intention of disowning me just because I was sorted into a different House."

"Really, Bella, one would think you're overreacting," said James, smirking. "Always jumping to the worst conclusions, aren't you? Where's the family loyalty?"

"Miss Black, please report to your dormitory," said the prefect sharply. "Don't create a scene in front of the other first-year students. You, Mr Black and Mr Potter can discuss your family matters in private."

Bellatrix sniffed at the prefect, glared at her two younger cousins and stormed away. Sirius let out a shaky breath he didn't know he was holding.

"I really, really, don't like her," murmured James.

Sirius snorted. "At least you only had to see her a few times a year," he whispered as they moved towards Gryffindor Tower. "Me? I had to see her four times a week. Trust me, it was torture."

After they reached Gryffindor Tower, they were swiftly assigned different rooms. Since there were about forty odd boys and forty odd girls in the year, they couldn't all be put in a single room. James and Sirius found themselves rooming with two other boys called Remus Lupin and Peter Pettigrew. Lily found herself rooming with Marlene McKinnon, Alice Fawley and Mary Macdonald.

After changing, too full and tired, all the first years went to bed early. They were finally at Hogwarts.

The first week of Hogwarts passed by quietly, with all of them adjusting to their new routine. Lily, having read all her school books before coming to Hogwarts, had quickly been noticed by many of her teachers, especially Professors Flitwick and Slughorn. Even though they were in different Houses, Lily and Snape made it a point to talk to each other whenever they could. She found herself thriving in her new classes and she also liked her new friends. Two of her friends were purebloods while Mary was half-blood. The four roommates had become quick friends and Lily was happy to have been accepted by her schoolmates.

In the boys' dormitory, Peter and Remus were both shy and not as outgoing as James and Sirius. Both of them had stuck to each other during the first week of school while the other two spoke to nearly everyone in Gryffindor Tower. However, on the first weekend after school started, Sirius decided that they needed to get to know their roommates.

"Okay," said Sirius, plopping himself on Remus' bed. "What's up with you, Remus? Don't you like us or something?"

Remus Lupin was startled when he saw the young Black sitting on his bed, looking at him expectantly. He felt someone else sitting down and saw James also looking curious.

"We tried to talk to you all week but you avoided us," observed James. "Did we do something wrong, mate?"

"N-No," stammered Remus, flushing.

"Oi! Peter! Come over here!" yelled Sirius. The short, pudgy boy slowly moved closer and looked at them somewhat fearfully.

"We're not going to eat you," said James, looking bewildered. "You don't have to be scared of us, you know."

"So, what's your story, Remus?" said Sirius, putting his hand under his chin, his piercing grey eyes fixed on the other boy.

"There's nothing to say, really," said Remus slowly. Mentally, he was panicking. What made them ask such questions? Did they already know that he was a werewolf? But how could they have known?

James and Sirius looked at each other and frowned. Remus took a deep breath. "Well, there's nothing much to tell," he said quietly. "My father works in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures at the Ministry of Magic. We live in South Wales and I've been home-schooled until now."

Sirius waved his hand dismissively. "Jamie and I have been home-schooled too, so we know how it is," he said, avoiding his friend's punch at the nickname. "It's nice to finally be around kids our own age now, huh? What about you, Peter?"

Peter squeaked – like a mouse, thought James – and revealed that he had gone to a magical primary school in Cornwall before receiving his Hogwarts letter. Ten minutes later, Remus finally relaxed as he realised that the other two boys had not discovered his secret. He would have to keep it that way. After all, he couldn't throw away Professor Dumbledore's generosity like that.

"You know, I'm bored," said Sirius, one hour later.

James laughed. "You always say that, Sirius," he muttered, punching his friend's arm. "What do you want to do?"

"I wish I could get back at Bella for informing Mother – in delicious detail – about me being a disgrace to the Black family."

James grimaced. On the second day of school, Sirius had received the mother of all howlers from Walburga Black. No one in the school could actually hear anything properly for several hours after that. In fact, he had heard that Dumbledore's aged eardrums had actually burst and Madam Pomfrey had to heal him. Walburga's screeching was insane, calling Sirius a disappointment and a disgrace on the House of Black.

To think people would call their own child a traitor all because of a House at school was shocking! Now what to do about little Bella?

A slow smirk formed on James' face.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Please, please, pretty please?" begged James.

"No."

"But I haven't done _anything_ the past week. You said it yourself! A good prank never harms anybody."

"But this is a single person who is being pranked," said Dorea sharply. "And that's why I won't help you. It's not random and it's not just for a good laugh. It's revenge."

James sighed as he closed his eyes. There was a communications mirror plopped on his lap. He had just called home after his talk with Sirius. He wanted to prank Bellatrix but his mother was not cooperating.

"She's your cousin, James, remember that," said Charlus sternly.

"Dad, I really don't think Sirius deserved what he got," explained James hotly. "He was so embarrassed that day. How would you feel if your mother shouted at you like that on your second day of school? I just want to make him feel better and get back at her for being such a tattletale. Really, it was none of her business."

"No, James, sorry," said Dorea firmly.

James huffed as he deactivated the mirror, feeling frustrated. He needed a specific potion for the prank but he didn't have the ingredients for it. He was hoping that his parents would help him but even his mother wouldn't understand.

What to do?

As he pondered the idea, his eyes lit up. The potions cupboard for students contained those ingredients – no one would notice if he took some. And he had a perfect way to get to the dungeons undetected. Tapping his wand and muttering the password to his trunk, he removed the Peverell Invisibility Cloak. Once he was invisible, he slowly crept down the stairs and out of the tower. Three hours later, his cauldron was cleaned, and he held a phial which contained a bright orange liquid. Now, all he had to do was wait for the right moment. Thankfully, he knew enough magic for this to work. While witches and wizards in the magical world did not learn wanded subjects until the age of eleven, his parents hadn't bothered with the rule. That was the reason he had never gone to magical primary school, and was home-schooled instead, with a few paid tutors. Therefore, along with learning how to read and write English, basic Mathematics, Magical History, and Magical Theory, he had also learnt quite a few spells using one of the spare wands at the manor. That would now come in handy.

"Dinner is going to be so much fun tonight," said James, grinning excitedly.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Why are you so happy?" asked Sirius curiously.

"No reason," said James innocently.

Remus and Peter did not press the matter and the conversation switched to other topics. James waited for the perfect moment. He held the phial in his hand, under the table, and wand in the other. He ensured that no one was paying any attention to him. When he saw Bellatrix's goblet unattended, he flicked his wand and muttered lightly under his breath. The orange liquid vanished and mixed with the pumpkin juice of Bellatrix's glass. Smiling in satisfaction, quite elated at having performed the switching spell perfectly even though he didn't have direct sight, he flicked his wand back to his holster and happily chatted with his friends.

Unfortunately, James was not quite as good at switching spells as he thought. It had worked, but not perfectly.

There was a clatter as a plate dropped to the ground at the Slytherin table. James turned, trying his best to hide his elation, but much to his horror, Bellatrix was fine. Instead, a first-year student, something Snape, was drinking from his glass.

 _Why is Snape affected by the potion? I switched it to Bella's drink, right?_

Lily Evans's eyes were wide as saucers as she watched her best friend bark like a dog and howl like a wolf. He began dancing around the place, clapping merrily until finally, about ten seconds later, he sang in a tune, " _I am a tattletale, woof, woof! Spank me like a naughty dog, woof, woof! Throw me a juicy bone, woof, woof! I am a tattletale, woof, woof!_ "

James buried his face in his hands. This was a complete _disaster_. After several seconds, Snape finally regained control as he realised what had happened. His face burned in embarrassment. His face, ears and neck were flushed red as someone snorted. That began a chain reaction and pretty soon, everyone in the hall was laughing. Not able to hide his shock and anger, Snape walked out of the Great Hall. Lily too abandoned her food to comfort her friend. James never saw the filthy look being directed at him by Snape when he left.

James' ears were pink as he quietly ate his food, not having taken part in the laughter of his schoolmates. He kept his head down, not wanting to be caught in Professor McGonagall's proverbial 'ward line' as people put it.

This was not supposed to happen. His prank had targeted the wrong person.

"Bugger," he muttered to himself.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Snape stormed out of the Great Hall amidst laughter. He couldn't control himself. Just before he left, he saw the expression on the face of James Potter and he could just smell something wrong. That horrible, pampered prince was no doubt the cause of all this. Not able to control his volatile emotions, he swiftly walked away. Just as he was about to head downstairs to the dungeons, someone stopped him.

"Severus! Wait!"

He turned around, only to see his best friend running to catch up to him. Snape's face heated up even more. Why did he have to make such a big fool of himself in front of Lily?

"Are you okay?" asked Lily in concern. "What happened?"

"Potter happened, that's what!" snarled Snape, finally losing his cool.

"James?" asked Lily in surprise. "What does James have anything to do with this?"

Snape's eyes widened. _James? Since when did she start calling him James?_ A horrible sensation welled up in his gut. Had she already befriended that boy? Was she going to stop being his friend and go over to James Potter?

" _James?_ " repeated Snape, his face furious. "So you're friends with the git, is it?"

Lily frowned at him. "No, Severus, he and I are not friends," she explained. "On the second night in Gryffindor Tower, the prefects had all the first years come down to the common room for a chat so that we could introduce ourselves. You know, get to know our Housemates. What did James do?"

"It's his fault that I embarrassed myself like this!"

Lily looked bewildered. "Why would you blame him? He was on the opposite side of the Hall when – ahem – it happened."

"I saw the expression on his face. I know he did it just to embarrass me."

"Why would he do that?"

Snape's expression fell as he turned around. "I can't believe you're defending some _stranger_ over me. I thought we were friends? _Best_ friends?"

"We are, Sev," said Lily patiently. "Don't worry. Things will blow over very soon."

Snape's expression calmed as Lily hugged him, but he _knew_ in his gut that James Potter was behind it. He would trust his instincts. There was something about Potter that he didn't like. He had disliked Potter from their very first meeting. If it was someone else, oh well. If it was Potter . . . he would find out the truth eventually.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

James stripped down to his underpants and slipped into bed. He was unusually quiet and his roommates noticed that. This was not the first time James had pranked someone. He and his mother had prank wars all the time at home, and Charlus Potter always got himself involved somehow. Frank Longbottom, who James had grown up with, was also a target whenever the two spent time together, but that was rare and infrequent.

Suddenly, James felt so _lonely_. Unfortunately, this was not something he was unfamiliar with. With both his parents having busy careers – he still did not know where his mother worked – he was usually left home alone with a nanny or the house-elves. They would come home every day for lunch, of course, and they would spend the evening together, but James still spent a lot of time alone at the manor. For years, he had pined for a sibling, but his parents never had any more children. The loneliness came back again in full force now. He had done something he knew was wrong and he had no one he could confide in. His parents would be very disappointed in him, he knew it.

He honestly hadn't meant to prank that Snape boy.

His bed curtains opened slightly and James felt a weight on his bed. He looked sideways, only to spot Sirius with a serious expression on his face.

James chuckled mentally at the pun and decided to give it a try.

"Hey, Sirius, why are you so serious?"

A small smile broke out on the Black heir's face as he laughed, punching his friend playfully. He sobered up immediately and asked, "Why did you do that?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Why did you prank that Snape kid?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," lied James.

Sirius simply stared at him, making James squirm. "Jamie, I know that it was you," he said in a low voice.

"How did you know?" whispered James harshly.

Sirius grinned. "You just admitted it to me! That's how I know!"

James groaned as he pulled the soft blanket over his head. It was pulled back and the other boy asked, "Why did you do it?"

"It wasn't meant for him! It was supposed to be a prank on Bella!"

Sirius snorted and his grey eyes softened. "I really appreciate it, James, I do, but you didn't have to do that. I would have extracted my revenge on her later."

James huffed. "It's not revenge, you know," he said in an annoyed voice. "It's justice for what she did to you. And I have no idea why the potion ended up in Snape's drink. Maybe my switching spell was wrong."

"You can perform a switching spell?" asked Sirius in surprise. That was advanced Transfiguration, not known to any first-year student.

"Yeah, why?"

"Mate, you have got to teach me!"

An hour later, James was still awake. He pondered on what had happened during dinner and finally shrugged it off. It was just a joke. No one was hurt and it was chalked off as a prank. He would forget about it and so would everyone else. After all, it wasn't as if anyone other than Sirius had suspected him.

Little did James know that his little accident would be the beginning of one of the biggest feuds Hogwarts had seen in recent times.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Remus? Are you okay?"

The eleven-year-old boy nearly tripped on his shoes when he heard the voice. He turned around, only to spot one of his classmates looking at him in concern.

"I'm fine – ahem –"

"Lily," said the girl softly. "Lily Evans."

"Right," said Remus. He really looked very tired and haggard and many had wondered if he was sick.

"Do you want me to accompany you to the hospital wing?" asked Lily again.

"No thanks. I'll manage on my own. Thanks for your concern."

Lily watched him go, frowning. Remus looked very sick. Maybe she should tell Professor McGonagall? Just then, James and Sirius walked out of the Charms classroom, laughing about something. Lily was annoyed. Their roommate was sick and these two couldn't even be bothered?

"Excuse me, but do you know what's wrong with Remus?" asked Lily immediately, halting their laughter.

James looked at her and the butterflies in his stomach were back in full force. Only now did he finally take a good look at her, and he had to admit that she was very cute. He had never met anyone with that shade of green eyes. They were mesmerising and the way she tilted her head when she was concerned . . .

He spoke without thinking.

"Why, do you have a crush on him?"

Lily's face reddened in embarrassment as Sirius laughed. James kicked himself for his stupidity. What made him say something that ridiculous? She was obviously concerned. So was he!

"If you must know, Potter, I was simply worried about our classmate," she said coldly. _Looks like Severus was right about Potter._ "I never expected you to ignore him when he is unwell. I thought he was your friend."

"I – well –"

Lily rolled her eyes as she marched off in the opposite direction. Sirius was frowning at her. "Who is she to judge us like that?" he asked angrily. "We've been taking care of Remus every night for the past two days."

James wasn't listening. His face was flushed and he wondered once again what was wrong with him. Taking a deep breath, the two friends walked towards the Defence classroom for their next lesson.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

The first term passed by quickly. However, for James Potter and Sirius Black, they were curious about one Remus Lupin. Since the time they were at Hogwarts, the boy would disappear for a few days once a month because he was 'unwell' and come back more haggard than before. That was the topic of conversation on the last day of school before the winter holidays.

"Which illness could he possibly have?" asked James.

"I don't know," replied Sirius. "He's fine for like three weeks a month. Then on the fourth, he gets all emotional and sick and – hey, Jamie, do you think Remus might be a girl?"

James looked confused for a few moments, blinking owlishly until he realised what his friend was talking about. Chuckles turned into full-blown belly laughs as both friends rolled on the floor, trying to control their tears.

"Sirius, I can't believe you just said that," said James, gasping for breath. "Remus isn't – you know –"

"On his period?" grinned Sirius. "We'll never know until we ask him."

"Sirius, he's a _boy_! It's just not possible!"

Just when they were talking, they felt someone fire a spell at them. The banishing charm caught them unawares as they were blasted back to the wall. They blinked groggily, only to spot –

"Potter," spat Snape. "I've been waiting to talk to you."

Sirius narrowed his eyes. "What do you want, Snape?" he shouted angrily. "Why did you attack us?"

Snape ignored him. "It's your fault, Potter, I know it! You're the one who spiked my pumpkin juice. Don't deny it!"

James simply gaped at the boy. It had been three months since that incident and he had honestly forgotten all about it. Then the anger came. His wand sailed out of his holster as he stood up.

"Don't accuse me without evidence, Snape," spat back James, wondering how the other boy had figured it out. But the prank hadn't actually been meant for the first-year Slytherin, so he asked, "Why should I target you? I barely know you!"

"You're just jealous!" replied Snape hotly.

James and Sirius looked at each other and burst out laughing. "Jealous?" said James, looking at Snape as though he were insane. "Why the hell would _I_ be jealous of _you_?"

 _Because Lily is my best friend and I know you like her too,_ thought Snape furiously. "Stay away from us, Potter, if you know what's good for you. Take that big head of yours and shove it up your stinky Gryffindor arse."

James' face burned in anger as he raised his wand, intending to blast Snape to smithereens. "Why you little –"

Before the fighting could get any worse, however, Professor Slughorn appeared. "What's going on here?" he asked sternly. "Not fighting I hope, boys?"

"No, Professor," said Sirius through gritted teeth. "We were just wishing _Snivellus_ here happy holidays."

"We also hope that he washes his greasy hair," said James sardonically as the two of them walked away. "Haven't you heard of shampoo?"

Snape too walked away, muttering to himself. He had wanted to get his revenge on Potter but had failed. It was not only about the prank anymore. It was more personal.

This was about Lily.

Snape had observed James Potter over the past three months and he did not like the conclusion he had arrived at. Potter's face would become flushed whenever he spoke to Lily. He would get a gleam in his eye and would stare at her constantly and would look flustered. Snape identified those emotions as the same ones he had felt when he had first met Lily. He had decided that Potter had feelings for Lily and was hence a rival for her affections and friendship.

And Snape could not let that happen. He couldn't lose Lily. She was his best friend! The only silver lining in all this was that Potter would constantly make a fool of himself whenever Lily was around, which would infuriate her.

For now, he decided to forget about Potter. He and Lily were already planning on studying magic together during the summer holidays next year. Just because they couldn't do magic didn't mean they couldn't study the theory or prepare potions. Maybe they could even make the potion better than the author! With him and Lily working together, nothing was impossible!

Besides, anything was better than staying under the same roof as Tobias Snape.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _AN:_** ** _I am doing my utmost best to be fair to both James and Snape. While there is no denying that I loathe Snape, I am trying to be as impartial as possible, drawing my conclusions from canon. From the books, we have seen incidents only from Snape's angle – but there are two sides to every story._**

 ** _James Potter is a character that is hated as much as Dolores Umbridge. Am I exaggerating? I don't think so, at least not from what I've seen and read. We judge him due to one incident when he was fifteen, and we ignore the rest of his personality and actions. It is disgusting and unfair. What James did in Book 5 was cruel, but was Snape never to blame at all? Even JKR admitted that he was an all-grey character, and that was after Lily's death. What I'm trying to show are situations from both perspectives. I hope you can see that in future chapters. My goal is to explore their characters, but unfortunately, I don't have much to draw from the books._**

 ** _I hope you've enjoyed it. Please do let me know what you think by leaving a review. I would love to read your opinions as well._**


	3. Shadow of Blood Purity

**_Chapter 3 – Shadow of Blood Purity_**

 _28_ _th_ _June, 1967 . . . Summer after first year_

 _Evans' household_

Lily Evans sighed as she collapsed on the bed. She was finally home after her first year at Hogwarts.

Thinking of Hogwarts reminded Lily of how good it really was. Much to her joy, she had stood first in her year! Her teachers were all very impressed with her talent, especially Professor Slughorn. The man was constantly raving about her skills in potions. In fact, until she had clarified otherwise, the man had thought she was wizard-raised. She had been quite insulted by it until her friend Mary had explained it to her.

The reason Slughorn was surprised by her being a Muggleborn was because most purebloods and half-bloods were just more talented in magic. It had nothing to do with blood purity as many of the Slytherins taunted her with, but more due to the fact that magic was part of their lives since birth. To them, magic was _normal_ unlike her who had seen it as an extra ability. Mary, Alice and Marlene had explained that it was a _way of life_.

Only when Lily began observing little details did she realise that her friends were right. None of the girls there used toothbrush or toothpaste. They would use a mouth freshening and cleaning charm in the form of a mint-tasking toffee; others simply used the charm directly. There was no need to go to the kitchens for water. Lily, in the first term of school, used to fill water in a bottle at breakfast and carry it around. She was quite frustrated with it, wondering why there were no places where she could find drinking water during break times until she realised why none of her friends did it. There was a charm that could conjure fresh water and their bottles had self-refilling charms in them. Communication was not always by owl. There were charmed mirrors for that, not to mention the Floo network. Such technology wasn't even heard of in the Muggle world! Most of all, the magical world was not a replica of the Muggle world because their culture was completely different from what she was used to. They had their own laws, government, traditions and beliefs which had nothing to do with the Muggle world and this was quite surprising to her. It dawned on her that she was entering a new country, even if she had never physically left her own.

That was when she vowed to herself that she would learn everything possible to integrate better into wizarding society. She would integrate herself into their culture. Just because she was a Muggleborn witch didn't mean that she had to be looked down upon. Severus had lied to her. The bigotry against Muggleborns was horrible, especially due to some of the Slytherins. How Severus could be friends with such people was beyond her! And yet he constantly complained about Potter.

James Potter . . . he was yet another mystery. The boy was unlike anyone she had met. He could be so sweet at times and yet so downright arrogant. She didn't know why, but something had happened over the course of their first year that made Potter and Severus hate each other. Whenever the two of them even crossed paths, they would draw their wands, waiting for the other to strike.

What were they fighting about?

Lily sighed. Her friend was also changing. Severus was hanging out with people like Mulciber and Avery – those two constantly called her a Mudblood. Her friends had been furious at that and had explained to her what it meant and Lily was determined now more than ever that no one would judge her by her blood. If they had to judge her, it would be by merit and her character, not blood. She wondered who had attacked Mulciber and Avery after that Mudblood incident. Both of them had been in the hospital wing the entire night. Apparently, they had been vomiting slugs for hours on end.

"Oh, so the freak is back."

Lily winced as the door opened, only to reveal her angry older sister. Petunia was scowling and Lily wondered how they were to share a room when there was such animosity between them.

"Hey Turney," she said, forcing a smile on her face. "How was the second term at school?"

Petunia sniffed. "Much better without a freak in the house."

Lily's eyes watered. Her sister wouldn't even utter her name anymore. It was always 'freak this' and 'freak that'. Not wanting to break down in front of Petunia, she walked out of the room. Just when she reached the living room, her mother stopped her.

"We need to talk," said Rosemary Evans. "Petunia, come down here!"

Once the four of them were in the small living room, Andrew Evans cleared his throat. "Girls, we have good news."

Petunia was tempted to say something about Lily's freakish powers, but held her tongue, partly due to the glare her mother was currently throwing at her. Andrew continued. "I know that money has been tight for quite a while now, but things are finally looking better."

He smiled at their dumbfounded faces. "I've gotten a new job in Surrey, which pays a lot better than what I earn now. What else you need to know is that your mother and I had been saving money for several years. My new boss was able to get me a good deal and so we have purchased a house in Little Whinging, Surrey. The house has four bedrooms, so both of you can get your own rooms. What do you say?"

It took a while for it to sink in, but both girls finally squealed excitedly as they went over to give their parents a hug. They were jumping around in joy at moving to a new house.

Only an hour later did Lily realise what that meant.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"I'm sorry."

"I don't care."

"It wasn't my decision! I had no idea that my parents were planning on moving."

"Yeah right."

"Severus!"

Lily watched in exasperation as her friend tore more leaves to shreds. How was it her fault that her parents had purchased a new house? But she did understand that he must be hurt, so she sat down next to him under the tree.

"Sev, why do you think this is going to change anything?" asked Lily. "You're still my best friend. Haven't I proved that to you over the past year at school? My parents promised to get me an owl this year. We can write to each other all the time. It's not a communications mirror, but its close . . ."

Snape was very upset. Having to come back home was one thing, but to find out that his best friend – and secret crush – was moving away was a lot worse. Why did this happen to him? Did Karma hate him or something? Now Lily was not going to be here. He had been looking forward to this summer. Finally, now that Petunia wasn't so clingy anymore, he and Lily would have some time alone to talk, to study magic. But no . . . that hadn't happened because on the very first day back from Hogwarts, she tells him that she is moving away.

And he still had to deal with Tobias Snape.

His anger and jealousy intensified. He had overheard – well, spied on – James Potter and heard that he and his family were going to the Caribbean for the holidays. Snape's gut twisted. Such rich history and magical culture in those islands . . . Potter could never appreciate it, not with that dunderhead brain of his. Why, if he could go to such a place, he would drink their history and magical knowledge like it was nectar.

Damn Potter and his parents.

"Do you hate me?"

Snape looked at Lily as if she were mad. "No, of course not!" he cried. "I could never hate you! You're too – too –"

He flushed in embarrassment as Lily laughed – her musical laugh – and hugged him lightly. "Don't worry, Sev, everything will work out. You'll see."

Snape smiled slightly. _Yes, everything will work out as long as Potter's feelings aren't reciprocated._

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _Potter Manor_

James sighed in contentment as he collapsed on his expansive bed at Potter Manor. No matter where they went, there was nothing like home. He and his parents had spent about two weeks in the Caribbean islands. James had always been fascinated with magical history and it was such a joy to learn something other than boring goblin rebellions. But the best part was definitely the beach. Running around in nothing but a pair of swimming trunks had put a healthy glow on his skin. But now that he was back home, it was time to concentrate on the most important item on the agenda for the summer.

Quidditch.

James was determined to get on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. He knew that he was a fantastic flyer; now the only thing to do was impress the team captain.

And maybe impress Evans as well. His cheeks inflamed at the very thought of the girl. Just when he was about to start daydreaming about her lush dark-red hair and green eyes, there was a knock on the door and his father entered.

"James, we need to talk," said Charlus quietly.

"What about?" asked James curiously.

Charlus sighed as he ran his fingers through his messy black hair. He flicked his wand and James' favourite armchair came zooming from the other side of the room. He sat down and stared at his young son.

Twenty minutes later, James was still blushing furiously. This talk was infinitely worse than the talk he had received when he was ten years old. That had been a curious question about where babies come from. _This_ was about his bodily changes and his increasing attraction to girls.

"It's normal," explained Charlus patiently. "It happens to every boy, Jamie, there is nothing to be embarrassed about it. Our bodies react like that to girls as we grow up. Do you understand?"

James quickly nodded. He _really_ did not want to talk to his father about _hair_ and _erections_. He felt like disappearing under his bed and never coming out.

The twelve-year-old boy whimpered. How could things get any worse? Another ten uncomfortable minutes later, Charlus paused. "Have you been attracted to anyone recently?"

"Yeah," said James quietly. "There's a girl in my year. Whenever I'm around her, I get tongue-tied and say stupid things."

Charlus laughed as he put an arm around his son. "That's part of growing up, Jamie," he said, kissing the boy on the forehead. "Come to me for advice if you ever need it, understood?"

James smiled as he hugged his dad tightly. "Thanks, Dad."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _Black Manor, Scotland_

Sirius Black _hated_ parties. He especially hated the ones hosted by the Black family because he was forced into a ridiculously expensive pair of robes and made to talk to everyone who had arrived. The ballroom at Black Manor was currently a beehive of activity as many influential witches and wizards were there, including Minister of Magic Millicent Bagnold.

"Sirius, come here," said Walburga. "Madam Marchbanks wants to talk to you."

The Black heir grimaced as he walked once more over to his mother. She was dressed in fine robes and intricate jewellery – that could no doubt buy half of Knockturn Alley – and was conversing with a very old woman.

"This is my oldest son, Sirius," smiled Walburga, introducing him to the Head of the Department of Magical Education. "He's just finished his first year at Hogwarts, you know. He's one of the top five students in his batch."

 _Oh, how lovely,_ thought Sirius sarcastically. _Now I'm suddenly her son because I do something that brings pride to the House of Black. But until the day of the results, I was a disgrace. How predictable._

"It's an honour to meet you, Madam Marchbanks," said Sirius, kissing her wrinkly knuckles as he bowed to her.

"Hmm . . . polite," observed the old professor. She suddenly pinched his cheeks. "Top five is good, young man, but I expect you to do your best during your O.W.L.s., is that clear?"

"Yes ma'am," replied Sirius, trying not to rub his smouldering cheek. From the other corner of the room, he could see his father trying to hide a smirk. A hint of a smile appeared on the face of the young boy. At least this summer, his father was _trying_ to be part of their lives.

Better late than never, right?

He sighed once more as he walked over to another woman, only to see, much to his surprise and elation –

"Aunt Dorea?" said Sirius happily. "I didn't know that you were coming!"

Dorea Potter laughed lightly as she hugged the boy. "How can I miss a ball hosted by the Blacks, Sirius? I am the daughter of the family, after all."

"Is James here?"

"Of course, though I'm not sure why he hasn't come over to talk to you yet."

Sirius immediately moved around the room, trying to find his best friend. Five minutes later, he found James locked in a staring match with several people. The boy was surrounded.

"You don't know what're you're talking about James," said Bellatrix loftily. "Clearly something has poisoned your mind if you think Mudbloods aren't filth."

Ah, the age-old discussion. Sirius stared at James with a frown on his face. Andromeda, Narcissa and Regulus were quietly standing by and watching. Frank Longbottom was frowning as he stood behind James, ready to defend his little friend should the need arise. On the other side were Bellatrix Black, Lucius Malfoy, Aiden Avery, Theodore Nott, and Rodolphus and Rabastan Lestrange.

James was never one to give up, Sirius had to admit that. His friend would have made a good Slytherin himself with the way he was handling this.

"Me?" asked James in surprise. "What about you, Bella? Are you sure you aren't spouting blood purity only because you truly believe in it or because a certain someone is whispering in your ear?"

"What do you mean?" said Rodolphus dangerously, jumping to defend his girlfriend.

"Well . . ." replied James slowly, enjoying the look of on their faces. "I have heard about a new leader . . . someone who is determined to finish Salazar Slytherin's _supposed_ noble work . . . and he called himself the leader of the Knights of Walpurgis. Familiar? It was in yesterday's newspaper, after all."

Sirius sucked in a breath and so did everyone else. James, however, looked defiant, staring at Rodolphus and Lucius in the eye. "Ten Muggles were killed," whispered James. "And apparently the D.M.L.E. found them to have been killed by the Killing Curse. We have a madman on the loose, don't we?"

"Jamie," warned Frank softly, touching the boy's shoulder.

James's hazel eyes were hard. "There was an attack before that as well. Six Muggles dead. Apparently, one of their kids had been magical. It was all there in the Daily Prophet. So, is someone whispering things in your ear, Bella?"

"Don't talk about things you don't understand, James," said Bellatrix dangerously. "You're a pureblood, you should hold your head high and be proud of it."

"I am," acknowledged James, holding his head high, surprising them. "I am the scion of the Peverell clan, the descendant of Godric Gryffindor. I am proud of my heritage, but what I am not – is a filthy murderer – unlike certain people."

Rodolphus snarled as he reached for his wand, only to be held back by his younger brother who shook his head.

"You should be careful not to make bold statements in public, Mr Potter," said Lucius coolly. "People might think you are a dangerous influence."

James remained silent.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Charlus stood silently as he drank from his glass of Firewhisky. He was surrounded by Arcturus and Orion Black on one side and by Nott, Lestrange, Malfoy and Avery on the other.

"There is someone who feels that our culture is quickly fading, yes," answered Abraxas Malfoy slowly. "But he is reluctant to step out of the shadows, you see. He is a brilliant man and seeks radical reform. I'd say he is one of the most charismatic people I have ever met."

"And who is this person?" asked Orion sharply.

"Oh, I don't know his name," laughed Abraxas. "He said that he will reveal himself soon, Orion. Maybe he'll enter into politics, maybe not. But his goal is set."

"Which is what, precisely?" asked Charlus.

Randolf Lestrange smiled thinly. "Come on, Charlus," he said laughing. "You can do better than that. You know what state our world has come to. We need to reform, change, otherwise, we will be crushed by lesser beings."

"Lesser beings by definition cannot crush those more powerful than them," replied Charlus tightly.

Avery chuckled. "Not if they infiltrate us and leak delicate information to our enemies. Such spies should be rooted out and exterminated."

Charlus' mind was spinning. They were talking in riddles, but the meaning was clear. _Lesser beings – Muggles. Spies – Muggleborns. There is someone out there who wants to exterminate all Muggleborns. Who is this person and how is he influencing so many people from the shadows?_

 _Is this the mysterious leader of the Knights of Walpurgis?_

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _Hogwarts_

Second year at Hogwarts started on a bright note for Lily Evans. She had finished all her summer homework, had been awarded points for doing them very well, was reunited with her friends, and best of all, she was learning more magic.

In the second week of school, Lily, Alice, Mary and Marlene was walking towards the Transfiguration classroom when they heard a shriek of pain. They quickly ran forward to investigate when they found Mulciber and Avery pointing their wands at a first-year student.

"Leave him alone!" yelled Lily furiously as she whipped her wand out. The two Slytherins stopped as they looked at the group of girls in surprise.

"Well, it looks like the Mudblood has grown a spine over the summer," said Mulciber as he chuckled. "How predictable, a Mudblood defending another filth like her."

"One more word," said Marlene dangerously as her wand glowed. Alice was already in an offensive position.

Avery snorted. "I never thought proud purebloods like yourselves would come to the rescue of a filthy Mudblood," he sneered.

"Blood traitors," spat Mulciber as he and Avery walked away, laughing.

Lily threw them a filthy look and immediately moved forward to help the boy. The little boy was crying in pain.

"Are you okay?" she asked in concern. "Does it hurt?"

The boy nodded.

"Let's take him to the hospital wing," said Mary. Lily nodded as she helped the boy up and the four escorted them to Madam Pomfrey.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Evans," said James softly, blocking her path to the common room.

"Potter," said Lily in surprise. "What do you want?"

James flushed slightly under her gaze. "Well, I heard about what happened today with Mulciber and Avery."

She scowled. Even though the two had cursed the boy, they got off with only a detention and loss of points! Professor Dumbledore had apparently chalked it off as a prank, but she knew better. She knew it was due to the blood-purity movement that was slowly gaining strength.

"Well, I wanted to tell you that you did a great job," said James nervously. He ran his fingers through his messy black hair. "I just wanted to warn you. You see, I saw Snivellus the other day with –"

"Stop right there," spat Lily. She _detested_ that name Sirius Black had given to Snape. "His name is _Severus_ and he's my best friend."

"Right," grimaced James, hating the fact that Lily was on first name basis with the guy, let alone his friend. "Well, Sniv – I mean, Snape was with –"

Lily exhaled in frustration. Even now Potter couldn't call Severus by his real name. She wondered why James Potter was constantly annoying her since the day they had arrived at Hogwarts. Every time they spoke to each other, he would put his foot in his mouth. Severus always told her that Potter was arrogant and conceited, but the boy was proving Severus right every day.

James watched her enter the tower with an annoyed expression on his face. Why didn't she understand that Snape was dangerous? He had found the greasy git conversing with Avery and Mulciber about something. He was only trying to look out for her!

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

In the third week of school, the first Quidditch match of the season was scheduled. Students were excitedly chatting amongst themselves as they walked to the Quidditch pitch. It was a clear day, without a cloud in the sky; in other words, perfect Quidditch conditions.

"It's so good that it's a weekend again," sighed Alice in contentment. "I swear, with classes and homework, I feel like I'm running a marathon."

"You don't know what a marathon is, Fawley," said Frank Longbottom as he passed her, grinning at her. "Ask me in private and I'll show you!"

Alice's cheeks tinted pink as she stared at the fourth year boy who was walking away, laughing with his friends.

"Oh oh," teased Lily. "Our dear Alice has a crrruuussshhhh!"

"Shut up, Evans!" snarled Alice as the other three laughed hysterically. "Or I'll start spreading a rumour that you have a crush on James Potter."

Lily's laughter abruptly stopped. "You wouldn't!" she said, horrified. "He already stalks me, Merlin knows how horrible it's going to get if you spread such ridiculous rumours."

"You may not have feelings for him, Lily, but he certainly likes _you_ ," said Marlene, giggling.

"What do you mean?" demanded Lily.

"Well . . ." said Alice slowly. "How about the fact that he blushes every time he talks to you?"

"Or that he makes a fool of himself by saying idiotic things whenever you're around."

"He even messes up his hair every time you're around, haven't you noticed that?"

"And he keeps staring at you . . . now _that_ is a little creepy, I suppose."

"He also attacked Avery and Mulciber last year when they called you a Mudblood," injected Mary helpfully.

"Wait, that was Potter?" asked Lily in surprise.

"Uh huh, he received a detention for it, but I heard him tell Black that it was worth it for attacking the boys who called you that."

The three girls watched in amusement and fascination when Lily Evans began blushing. They exchanged looks, but none of them said anything as they walked to the Quidditch pitch. Once they were all seated, the commentator began.

"Welcome to the first Quidditch match of the season between Gryffindor and Slytherin!" yelled Fabian Prewett as people cheered.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"You ready, James?"

James looked at the older boy who he had come to respect a great deal. His captain, seventeen-year-old Ethan Wood was smiling encouraging at him.

"Yes, Ethan," said James as he swallowed slightly. "Just a little nervous, I guess."

Ethan laughed as he ruffled James' hair playfully. "Don't worry, kiddo. You'll be fine. I was quite nervous myself on my first match."

"What happened?"

"I tried to execute a Wronski Feint to distract the other Seeker," said Ethan sheepishly, "and it didn't work out so well."

James suddenly felt a little better. Gripping his new Nimbus 1500 tightly, he mounted it and took off into the air. He breathed deeply as he looked at the crowd that was surrounding him. He was immensely glad that his mother had forced him to fix his eyesight. His glasses would have hindered the game. James felt goosebumps forming on his arms as he heard the chants getting louder from the stands.

He had a feeling Sirius had started it.

" _GO GO GRYFFINDOR! GO GO GRYFFINDOR!_ "

"I want a clean game from all of you," said Madam Hooch, her silvery eyes hard. It was customary for her to deliver the warning every year. "On my whistle."

James took a shaky breath as he took his position. He _had_ to take control of the Quaffle.

"Three . . . two . . . one . . ."

"And the Quaffle is up," said Fabian. "And the GAME BEGINS!"

No one could see clearly what was going on when the Quaffle was thrown in the air by Madam Hooch. The players were literally wrestling with each other as they struggled to take control of the Quaffle.

"The Chasers are quite vicious, aren't they?" commented Gideon Prewett.

"Too right, brother mine. And now someone has control of the Quaffle! It's a Gryffindor! James Potter is moving towards the hoops!"

Lily's head snapped up as she looked at the person in the air, her mouth open in shock. Potter was the new Gryffindor Chaser? When she was nudged in the ribs by Marlene, she reddened and glared at her friend who laughed.

James dodged a bludger coming his way as he avoided another Chaser. Seeing a member of his team right beneath him, James tossed the Quaffle as he distracted the Slytherin Chaser next to him. Moving with speed and accuracy, he caught the Quaffle again and moved towards the goal posts.

"Potter is in line with the hoops," said Fabian. "Is he going to do it?"

"Oh, narrow miss there," cringed Gideon. "That bludger nearly got him. Brilliant flying, though."

James gritted his teeth as he neared the Slytherin Keeper. Getting an inspiration, he acted as though he was about to toss the Quaffle to the rightmost hoop. The distraction worked as the keeper dived to the side, only for James to toss the Quaffle through the centre hoop.

The roar from the Gryffindors was deafening. James amused himself with the wordplay. The roar from the lions . . .

"POTTER SCORES!" yelled Gideon.

"Ten-zero to Gryffindor!" announced Fabian.

"Wow, he really can fly," muttered Alice as she watched James Potter score goal after goal. He seemed to be gaining more confidence as time went on. It was now two hours since the game started as the score was 160-90 in favour of Gryffindor. Suddenly, the Seekers dived. The crowd watched with bated breath as the two Seekers rushed after the snitch, concentrating heavily.

"They're going to crash!" yelled Lily.

The Slytherin Seeker did, however, Ethan Wood pulled up in the nick of time, with the golden snitch firmly held in his fist.

"Wood has caught the golden snitch! GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

"Is he alright?" asked Lily in concern.

"Who, Potter?" asked Mary in amusement. "He's fine."

"No, you idiot! I meant the Slytherin Seeker!"

The Seeker was thankfully okay, but he still had several injuries and was quickly rushed to the hospital wing.

"This game is madness," muttered Lily. "Brilliant and exhilarating, but mad all the same."

The three other girls laughed as they walked back to the castle. They heard rumours that there was a party in Gryffindor Tower that night.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

There certainly was a party alright. Having been informed by his father where it was, James, along with Sirius, had gone to the kitchen and nicked loads of food for the party. Of course, it wasn't strictly stealing . . . not when the house-elves were more than happy to give them food.

"I propose a toast!" said Ethan loudly. Everyone cheered at that as he shushed them. "To our amazing Keeper, for keeping the Quaffle from reaching the hoops!"

The keeper, a fifth-year boy, blushed as everyone clapped and whistled. "To our Beaters, the unbeatable girls, and the ones who are strong enough to wrestle Hagrid – thank you for keeping the enemies off our backs!"

The two girls laughed as many boys wolf-whistled. "And finally, to our Chasers," he said happily. "For scoring enough points so that we were assured of a victory. James, you're the baby of the team. While we were all impressed with your skills, we were still a little worried."

"That his big head would weigh him down," teased another Chaser and many laughed.

"But you managed to do it! So, everyone, let's raise our drinks to our newest Quidditch star – and baby of the team – James Potter!"

James grinned happily as Sirius slapped him on the back. He was officially the happiest guy in the world. From the corner of his eye, he saw someone staring at him. He turned, only to see a pair of vivid green eyes. To his immense delight, Lily smiled slightly, mouthed congratulations, and continued talking to her friends.

He practically skipped all the way to his dorm that night.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Remus, are you okay?" asked Sirius.

The twelve-year-old boy was once more startled, but not because of the question itself. He had gotten used to it over the past year. Every month, James, Sirius – and even Lily – asked him if he was fine and if there was anything they could do to help. And every month, he declined.

But this time, Sirius had a strange expression on his face. Remus swallowed. There was a reason people feared the Black family. One, they were known for their level of insanity. Two, they didn't care about anything standing in their way if they wanted something. And three, they could dig deep and find out any secret the other person had within their hearts.

Unfortunately, both Sirius Black and James Potter had inherited those traits.

There were other traits that defined the Potter family too, he had heard. But that family was so _obsessed_ with privacy that no one knew what to make of them. Too bad that James was just that unpredictable.

"I'm fine, Sirius," said Remus tiredly. "It's nothing really. My mother is sick and my father wants me to come home for a couple of days."

"Is she okay, Remus?" asked James. He noted that the other boy too had a strange expression on his face.

Peter, bless him, as usual, was confused.

"Yeah, just a slight fever," replied Remus quickly. "Now if you don't mind, I have to go. _Ahem_ , see you guys in a couple of days."

Two hours later, James and Sirius were still awake, sitting near the window of their dorm that faced the Hogwarts grounds. When the clouds parted and the bright moonlight bathed the grounds with its light, there heard the sound - a creature howling into the night.

"We were right," said James softly. "Remus is a werewolf."

Sirius nodded silently. It hadn't taken them both long to figure it out. Remus was sick once every month. Before long, Sirius had noticed a pattern. James, on the other hand, had noticed the howling noise that dominated the nights of the full moon. It hadn't dawned on them last year, but now, in mid-October, they had enough evidence to finally reach a conclusion.

"What do we do?" asked Sirius quietly.

James shrugged.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Two days later, Remus Lupin tiredly made his way back to his dorm room. Opening the door, he saw that James and Sirius were not undressed as usual. In fact, they were still wearing their casual clothes.

"Oh, Remus," said Sirius, smiling brightly. "How's your mother?"

"Ahem, fine," stammered Remus. He didn't like the glint in his friend's eye.

"And are _you_ feeling well?" inquired James. Remus quickly nodded as he walked towards his bed, intending to go to sleep quickly. Unfortunately, he wasn't that lucky.

"You kept us awake last night, you know," said James casually.

"Yes, all that howling . . . how anyone slept at Hogwarts, I don't know," agreed Sirius.

Remus stiffened in panic, his heart beating several miles an hour. "Excuse me?" he squeaked out.

"Are you feeling under the weather?" asked James, a single eyebrow raised. "Or under the _moon_?"

Remus felt his face drain of colour as he saw the expressions on his friends' faces. "I – I have n-no idea what you're t-talking about."

Sirius sighed as he said, "Stop freaking out, Remus, we're not going to expose you. We just want to know what happened. When were you bitten?"

"Bitten?"

"Yes, bitten," said James seriously. "A werewolf bite, to be specific."

If it were possible, Remus looked like a ghost. Sweat trickled down his face and he looked ready to pass out. "Please . . ." he begged. "Don't . . ."

James and Sirius looked at each other and fixed their gazes on their friend pityingly. "We aren't going to expose you, mate," repeated Sirius patiently. "Don't freak out. We haven't gone to the teachers nor have we told anyone else. It's just us."

 _'_ _Just us?'_ thought Remus. 'Us' here meant James and Sirius, and that was enough to give him a heart attack. They were the scions of two very rich and influential families, not to mention purebloods. They would never accept him.

"Remus," said James softly "Please, you can trust us. We could have easily gone and spread the word around, but we haven't. Doesn't that count for something?"

The young werewolf finally nodded. "Yes, it's true," he whispered.

"When did it happen?"

"When I was five years old. My father was quite outspoken against Fenrir Greyback's activities. He said that Greyback should be captured and executed for his crimes. Apparently, Greyback heard that and to take revenge against my father, he came one night when I was a child and bit me. I've been a werewolf since."

They heard a gasp from the door. All three of them paled, but James was the fastest. With a violent slash of his wand, the person standing near the door was summoned into the room. Sirius' reaction was just as fast. With a flick of his wand, the door to the dorm was locked and silencing charms were placed.

"Peter," said James quietly. "How much did you overhear?"

Peter Pettigrew looked at the blank faces of James and Sirius and the frightened face of Remus. He swallowed. There had been a werewolf in their room the whole time, but from what he had heard, James and Sirius were not mad. Maybe this was the moment they would finally include him in their little group. It had only been James and Sirius until now, but now . . . maybe he would be included as well. All he had to do was not be afraid of a bloody werewolf.

"Enough to know that I'll still be Remus' friend," said Peter shakily.

James' mouth twitched to form a small smile as he patted the pudgy boy on the shoulder. "See Remus? None of us cares. We're still your friends."

"Really?" asked Remus, unable to believe it. They knew he was a bloodthirsty werewolf once a month and they _still_ wanted to be his friend?

"Don't worry mate, we'll figure out a way to help you," said James confidently.

"And give you better ideas to skip classes," said Sirius, winking.

For the first time, Remus felt welcome at Hogwarts as James and Sirius started cracking jokes and laughing.

The journey of the Marauders had begun.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**


	4. Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail

**_Chapter 4 – Prongs, Padfoot, Moony and Wormtail_**

 _Leaving feast, end of Second Year_

There were cheers and celebrations in the Great Hall – well, for the Gryffindors anyway. Thanks to the Quidditch team's outstanding performance against Hufflepuff in the finals, they had won the Quidditch Cup, putting them in the lead and winning the House Cup for the first time in five years. James Potter especially was happy, as he had a part in winning the cup for his House.

The past several months had been wonderful for the group of four. After Remus admitted to being a werewolf, they began to trust each other more. James and Sirius, who had somewhat been disinterested in Peter until then, took the effort to include him too. The four of them came up with ways to entertain themselves in their dorms as they laughed and had fun. They also enjoyed another activity – causing chaos at Hogwarts.

The castle was soon the victim of a variety of pranks, from hair changing to random singing to soap bubbles sprouting from people's mouths and so on. Not wanting to only prank others, James and Sirius took to pranking each other spectacularly as well. The Great Hall had witnessed one too many times various instances where James would end up dancing on the table or Sirius would end up proposing to a shocked Professor McGonagall.

However, not everything was good, though. Not able to gain the attention of one Lily Evans, desperately trying to impress her, James had taken to annoying her with his pranks. Lily was quickly losing her patience because she felt like laughing at his stupidity while at the same time was irritated by his behaviour.

Lily was not oblivious. She knew that James had a crush on her, but she reasoned that she would be his friend only if James ended his enmity with her best friend Severus. On the other hand, Severus was more than furious with James Potter. Apparently, Potter being such a popular Quidditch player made Snape hate him even more but _this_ was unknown to Lily.

In fact, there were other things that were unknown to her that went on around her too.

One of the things that she was oblivious about was that the reason James and Snape hated each other – not counting what had happened in their first year – was because both knew the other had feelings for one Lily Evans. James' feelings for Lily were clear as day, and she knew about it, whereas Snape's feelings were not known to anybody, including Lily. Therefore, there was a war brewing between the young Gryffindor and Slytherin, with them getting into fights and receiving detentions.

Unfortunately, this did not work in James' favour as Lily did not like anyone fighting with her best friend that way.

Lily sighed as she cast a glance at the Slytherin table. Severus was once more whispering to Avery, Mucliber, Macnair and Malfoy.

"Seriously, Lily, why are you friends with him?" asked Marlene, sounding annoyed.

Lily kept her silence. The past two years had changed Severus more than she cared to admit. None of her friends could understand why she was even talking to him. Snape was known throughout the school for his knowledge of dark magic and she had heard Potter and Black muttering about him more than once.

But he was her childhood friend. She couldn't abandon him like that.

It was still nine in the morning, but the leaving feast was over. Albus Dumbledore stood up and a hush fell over the crowd.

"Another year, gone," said Dumbledore, but his eyes were not twinkling as usual. "Now that we are leaving the safe confines of the castle, I must impress upon you how dangerous the outside world is. There is a shadow looming over the horizon. I am speaking about –"

But his words were not finished as hundreds of owls suddenly descended upon the students, delivering the morning paper. James caught his edition of the _Daily Prophet_ and gasped when he saw the headlines.

 _Bodies_. . . so many dead bodies . . . it was an attack on a Muggle village. There was a symbol in the sky. It was green with a skull, and a snake came out of the mouth of the skull.

In the air above the dead bodies, were the words etched in flame.

 _I AM LORD VOLDEMORT_

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

James Potter sighed as he rubbed his eyes tiredly. It was the first week back from school and he was still studying. No, it wasn't homework; it was something far more important. He was doing this for a friend. He was doing this so that his friend needn't suffer. He shut the book and walked up to the first-floor landing of the library in Potter Manor. Searching through the thick tomes on Transfiguration, he flicked his wand, making the books float downstairs to the reading table. He climbed down the stairs and suddenly, he felt hungry.

"Sally."

The house-elf popped in front of him. "What can Sally do for Master James?"

"Can you please bring me something to eat? I'm hungry," said James, grinning sheepishly.

Sally nodded as she popped away, reappearing with slices of garlic bread and a glass of juice. Three hours later, James finished reading another chapter on the Animagus transformation, finishing writing down the important points in his notebook, returned the books to the appropriate shelves with a flick of his wand, and was just about to return to his room when he found his mother standing by the door to the library.

"Jamie?" asked Dorea sleepily. "What are doing up so late? It's past midnight."

"I couldn't sleep, so I was studying," lied James.

Dorea gave her son a funny look but shrugged it off. She sat down on the plush sofa and summoned the plate of unfinished slices of garlic bread.

"Dad won't let you kiss him with that mouth," teased James. "In fact, he'll probably kick you out of bed."

"What your father doesn't know won't hurt him," she said in amusement. "One mouth-freshening charm and he will never know that I ate anything with garlic in it."

The two sat in comfortable silence for a minute until the matriarch of the Potter family began. "James, what do you know about this pureblood movement that is going on outside?"

"It's more than just a movement," said James darkly. "It's Muggle and Muggleborn _slaughter_! What's the new name _the_ _Prophet_ has called the group? The Death Eaters?"

"Yes," replied Dorea slowly. "They called themselves the Knights of Walpurgis, but the media refer to them as the Death Eaters."

"Why doesn't the Ministry do something about these people?" asked James angrily. "Arrest them; sentence them to the dementor's kiss! Throw them through the Veil of Death!"

Dorea gave her son a weird look. "I'm afraid it's not that easy, James."

"Why ever not?"

"Because we don't know who this Voldemort person is," explained Dorea. "He suddenly appeared out of nowhere, has already influenced many of the powerful pureblood families and has started hunting Muggles. The Ministry only cares about the International Statute of Secrecy, nothing more."

"That's so unfair!" cried James. "Muggleborns are just the same as any pureblood witch or wizard. It's a fundamental fact that two Muggles cannot produce a magical child unless they have a magical relative somewhere in their bloodline."

"True," said Dorea, nodding along. "But you haven't understood the full concept of the movement. It's not about purebloods vs Muggleborns. It's about one man wanting more power and using pureblood propaganda to achieve it. The rest are stupid enough to follow, thinking he'll create a new world order. This is how the war with Grindelwald started – and we are making the same mistakes all over again."

James was startled. "Why do you say that?"

"Because if Voldemort really was interested in pureblood supremacy, he would leave the purebloods alone," said Dorea darkly. "Read tomorrow's paper and you'll figure it out. He's wiped out the Dearborn family. The only reason they aren't extinct is because their son was away at his aunt's place."

The thirteen-year-old boy kept staring at his mother. "Mum," he said quietly. "I have asked you this before, but how do you know all this? What exactly do you do?"

Dorea wondered if it was time. "If I tell you, I expect you to keep your silence on the matter," she said firmly. "You are to tell no one, not even Sirius, understood?"

James nodded immediately. The older woman took a deep breath. "I am the Head Unspeakable of the Department of Mysteries."

He froze. The Department of Mysteries was the most secretive department in the entire Ministry of Magic. There were several rumours about it, but no one knew what they did inside. In fact, James had heard that every magical government in the world had a Department of Mysteries and that a separate wing of the I.C.W. regulated it, which was why no magical government could ever shut it down.

"Wow," he muttered. "I knew your job was important, but never did I dream that . . . wow. Does Dad know?"

Dorea chuckled. "Of course he knows. He was given the offer to join the department himself all those years ago but he declined. He said he wanted to focus on his business ventures and play in the political field."

"So are the rumours true?" asked James excitedly.

"I can neither confirm nor deny them."

James deflated at that, but knowing that his mother was such an important woman made his chest swell with pride. "So you have no idea who this Voldemort character is?" he inquired.

She paused. "We have a few suspects, but I'm not sure. The problem is that we don't know who he is, where he's from and how far his teeth have sunk into our government. I find it difficult to trust anyone outside my department."

James was silent.

"Mum, can I ask you something? Something personal?"

"Of course."

"How is it that you don't hate Muggleborns like the rest of the Blacks?"

James was startled by the dark look that had formed on his mother's face. Dorea took a deep breath. "I won't deny that I am not a fan of Muggles, Jamie. I am a proud witch and what Muggles did to us was unforgivable. So many, _many_ tens of thousands of children were tortured and slaughtered because of the Muggles' blind hatred of magic – in Europe alone. We were driven underground, forced to implement the International Statute of Secrecy. Protecting the statute has become the I.C.W.'s biggest priority. So no, I can honestly say that I don't give two hoots about Muggles. But that doesn't mean I feel the same about Muggleborns. Well, there's a reason why I loathe pureblood propaganda. It's because of my brother Marius."

"Marius?" asked James in surprise. "But you only have one brother! Uncle Pollux!"

"No," exhaled Dorea. "He was born after your Aunt Cassiopeia but before I was. Unfortunately, he was born a squib."

James sucked in a breath as he understood where this was going. "He was kicked out?" he asked softly.

"Yes," said Dorea as a tear slid down her cheek. Her knuckles were white. "I have never fought with anyone as much as I had that night when they kicked him out of Black Manor. My parents, with their pureblood mania, decided that they couldn't have a squib in their house, for the reputation and purity of the House of Black had to be maintained."

James stood up and sat down on the arm of the sofa and hugged his mother tightly. She continued. "The next day I went to Gringotts, withdrew several thousand galleons from my personal vault, converted them into Muggle money and opened a bank account for Marius. Even though he was grateful for it, he asked me to never come and see him again. He hated everyone in our family, including me. But I kept an eye on him. When I was fourteen, I found out that he was dead. Murdered by Muggle thugs in London."

"I'm sorry," whispered James, gently wiping her tears away.

"That was the day I promised myself that I would never be like my parents. I would never listen to the pureblood propaganda they spout. Yes, I agree that Muggleborns bring their filthy Muggle culture into the magical world, and Merlin knows Albus Dumbledore encourages it, but that doesn't mean I will look down upon them. Marius changed my views on blood purity. Even if he was not magically strong enough to wield a wand, he was still a wizard. But my parents treated him like a common Muggle. And I can never forgive that. Pureblood, half-blood, Muggleborn or squib – we're all magical, and at the end of the day, that's all that matters."

James hugged his mother as she wept silently on his shoulder for her long-dead brother. But he had hope. Maybe, if Lily would like him back, his parents might accept her too. He felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders as he sighed in relief.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _1_ _st_ _September, 1970 . . . Two years later_

 _Platform Nine and Three-Quarters_

Fifteen-year-old Lily Evans smiled as she held the badge in her hand, staring at it happily. She couldn't help but grin once more at the scarlet badge with an intricate 'P' at the centre. She was made a prefect! She wondered, not for the first time, who the male prefect for Gryffindor would be.

Hopefully not Potter or Black.

Lily groaned as she remembered them. Things had changed with Potter. From being an annoying boy who pranked himself and everyone else for his own amusement, he had become a lovesick teenager who constantly asked her out. And when she said constantly, she meant _constantly_. At least once a day. The maximum record was eighteen times a day.

How she had not throttled him yet was something that went through the minds of everyone at Hogwarts. Lily had thought his crush on her would disappear, but unfortunately, it had not.

Fortunately, her crush on James which had developed in her second year had mostly evaporated – and it was truthfully Potter's fault. Well, maybe Severus' fault as well.

She sighed as she rubbed her temples. Severus . . . he was causing her more problems every year. He and James had taken to fighting like mad dogs and from what she had heard, Severus' spells were quite lethal. Once James had been admitted to the hospital wing and no one had seen him for two days. She had not spoken to Severus for _weeks_ afterwards for what he had done to James and her friends were practically begging her to stop hanging out with him. The curses he used on James were – there was no denying it. Dark magic.

Lily was worried that it would all end up in one big showdown. Severus' obsession with the Dark Arts was frightening, and she had even felt him trying to read her mind once. She would never have known about it unless James Potter had not gifted her that book on Occlumency for her thirteenth birthday. Severus had been quick to apologise after Lily had detected his passive Legilimency probe, but their friendship had cracks; major cracks.

Taking a deep breath, the fifteen-year-old girl walked down the stairs. Ignoring Petunia – who was busy talking to her mysterious boyfriend on the phone – Lily got into the car with her parents. Both Rosemary and Andrew Evans were very proud of their youngest daughter for having been chosen as prefect. Sometime later, they finally reached King's Cross Station. They walked her down to the barrier where Lily hugged her parents goodbye.

"Bye Lily," said Andrew, hugging his daughter tightly, kissing her forehead. "We'll see you during the winter holidays."

"Don't forget to write to us," said Rosemary as she hugged her daughter too.

"I won't," smiled Lily. "I'll see you guys in a few months!"

She then took off into a run and walked right past the wall and in a second, she had arrived at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Smiling at the familiar scarlet engine, Lily walked up to the front of the train. With a flick of her wand, she shrunk her trunk and put it in her pocket after applying a featherlight charm on it. With another flick, the trolley vanished and she stepped inside the train.

Such actions were so ingrained into her now that she didn't even attempt to drag the heavy trunk to her compartment. Lily had truly started thinking like a witch. In fact, there were many students in the years below her who were almost positive that she was wizard-raised and not Muggle-raised.

Entering the compartment meant for the prefects, Lily sat down on the plush seat and expanded her trunk. Once she was changed into her new school uniform, with the prefect's badge affixed to her chest, she began reading a book, only to be interrupted by –

"Alright there, Evans?"

Lily groaned into her book. She didn't even need to know who was there, but she did have to admit that his voice had gotten deeper over the summer. She turned to face the door and a light flush crept up on her cheeks.

 _James has surely grown up over the summer,_ she thought mentally.

James Potter was now standing a proud six feet in height. He was currently not wearing his uniform but had opted to wear black trousers and a sky blue shirt. An informal open robe was slung over his shoulders, and the top two buttons of his shirt were undone, giving her a perfect view of the muscles peeking from inside. The rigorous Quidditch practices he took part in had given him broad shoulders and a toned chest and stomach. His face, however, still retained the youthful roundness.

Girls practically jumped at him, but Lily had to admit, apart from the girls he took to Hogsmeade every month, he still continued to chase her, never giving up.

James looked at Lily and felt his face burn. Gone was the pretty girl he had seen at the sorting four years ago. Now, she was a beautiful young woman who could freeze any male with one look alone; he mentally grimaced as he remembered how he used to glare at Lily's dates over the past year. It would be worse now! Her lush dark-red hair was neatly brushed but held by a simple hair clip – just the way he liked it – and she was also wearing her uniform. His eyes trailed over her long, slender legs and delicate curves. Her mesmerizing green eyes were taunting him, as though denying him the most beautiful, delicious dessert in the world.

"Potter! POTTER!"

"Huh?" said James suddenly, blinking owlishly.

Lily was blushing. "Can you stop staring at me?" she said, doing her best to glare at him. "You're making me uncomfortable."

James simply shrugged. "Not my fault you're so beautiful, Evans."

Lily's mouth twitched in an amused smile. "Isn't it a little early to flirt with me?" she asked casually, going back to reading her book.

James grinned as he kneeled down in front of her. "It's never too early for you, Evans," he mumbled, taking her hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Now, will you _please_ go out with me?"

"Sorry, but the answer is still no."

"Oh, come on Lily," whined James. His eyes suddenly lit up. "Oh, I know! Maybe this will work!"

Lily looked at him wearily as he sat conjured a bouquet of roses.

"As much as I am impressed by the display of magic, the answer is still no," she said, trying to hide her smile.

"Why not?"

"You know why."

James huffed in annoyance and frustration. Of course, it was Snape. It _always_ came back to Snape. She had never outright said it, but he had figured it out last year. Snape hated James and thus, to honour their friendship, Lily would not date him. Besides, she hated the fact that he and Snape hexed each other constantly.

The bloody greasy git. What she saw in him to be friends with Snape was beyond him. The only silver lining was that Lily was oblivious to Snape's affections towards her. And it would stay that way if James had anything to say about it.

Who knows what Snape and his Death Eater friends would do if she was alone with those creeps?

Lily peered from behind her book. She observed James' face and saw a peculiar expression; she wondered what he was thinking about. "Please tell me you're not the Gryffindor prefect, Potter," she literally begged.

James burst out laughing. "Come on, Evans, you can do better than that! Who in their right mind who make _me_ a prefect? Certainly not good old Minnie! No, I got a badge too, but it's _way_ better than being a stupid prefect!"

Lily glared at him for the 'stupid' comment but was curious about what badge he was talking about. A few seconds later, her eyes widened. "You made Quidditch captain?"

"Uh huh," grinned James. He swooned, "And then the charming prince can take the beautiful princess on a ride on his broomstick in the moonlight."

Lily chuckled and shook her head. "Congratulations, James, you deserve it," she said genuinely.

"Thanks," he said happily. A smirk formed on his face as he winked at her. "So Evans, now that I'm the captain, will you ride my broomstick? I promise the experience will be quite pleasurable."

Green eyes met hazel and before he knew what was happening, the book in Lily's hand was repeatedly beating him upside the head.

"Ow! Stop it, you crazy woman!"

"Stop pestering me with those lame pickup lines and I'll stop hitting you! Really, Potter, we haven't even reached Hogwarts yet!"

"Alright, alright! I'm going! But don't think you can stay away from a fine specimen like me for too long!"

James grinned, running his fingers through his messy black hair as he stepped outside the compartment. His grin immediately faded, to be replaced by a cold, haughty look.

"Potter," sneered Snape. "What a _displeasure_ it is to see you here. What are you doing in the prefects' compartment? Or are you such a dunderhead that you can't figure out that you're _not welcome_?"

The Potter heir simply stared at the sallow face of his nemesis. _Who is he to tell me where I can and cannot go? It's not like he's a prefect either._ For a moment, James considered saying something back but he realised that Snape really wasn't worth his time. With a dismissive snort, he moved away from the boy, leaving Snape seething. Had Potter just _dismissed_ him as though he were some annoying _insect_?

Throwing Lily a glare from outside the compartment – who was busy reading a book with a _damn smile_ on her face – Snape stalked out of the prefects' carriage.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Why did I come back here?" moaned Alice as she buried her face in her hands.

Marlene and Lily looked at each other in surprise at their friend's comment. Mary was the first to ask. "What do you mean by that?" she demanded.

Alice threw her a dirty look. "Have you forgotten that this is our O.W.L. year? It's going to be hell! Trust me!"

Marlene laughed. "Don't worry, Alice," she said, smirking at the brunette. "If you're too stressed out, we can always push you and Frank Longbottom in a broom closet. That will certainly be relaxing for you."

Lily burst out laughing as Alice turned beet red, but Mary thankfully steered the conversation away.

"I see that Potter is our new Quidditch captain," she observed.

Marlene and Alice immediately cranked their necks to the side to observe the group of four. It was unusual, to say the least. The group had James Potter and Sirius Black – the two most popular and yet annoying boys in the school – along with Remus Lupin, who was studious and quiet (and the new prefect) and the small, pudgy boy, Peter Pettigrew. Not for the first time they wondered how the group of four came to be. Lupin and Pettigrew were just too different as compared to Potter and Black for them to be best friends.

Oh well, each to his own.

But there was no doubt about it. The scarlet badge with two broomsticks and an intricate 'C' in the middle was pinned to Potter's chest. And he was practically _glowing_.

"Looks like someone is proud of their badge," laughed Alice. "I wonder if he can get off the ground with his head inflated so much!"

"Do you think he'll ask you out again tonight?" said Marlene excitedly.

Lily sighed. "He already asked me out before the train could leave London," she said in resignation.

Mary huffed in frustration. "I don't understand why you won't date him, Lily. He's got a big head and you can say that he is arrogant, but he's not so bad that you can't even give him a chance to make you like him. He's proved himself to be quite sweet too."

The redhead was silent as she ate her dinner while the other three exchanged looks. Yes, James was arrogant and had a big ego. No question about that. And there was no denying that he had a gentle side either but the problem was she could never go out with James – even for a single date – without wreaking her friendship with Severus.

This was something her friends knew; and so did James.

And Lily did not want that to happen. No matter how much she and Severus had drifted apart, they were still childhood friends. He was the one who introduced her to the magical world at a young age and explained about a variety of things so that she could adjust to Hogwarts better. She just couldn't bring herself to abandon him like that, especially after the way he had reacted when he found out that the Evans family was moving away. Maybe if she could talk to him . . .

She groaned. Who was she kidding? James and Severus _loathed_ each other. The two of them being cordial to each other was as ludicrous as Lord Voldemort being a champion for Muggleborns!

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Two weeks into their fifth year, James, Sirius, Remus and Peter – or the Marauders, as they called themselves – were in one of the deserted classrooms in the north wing of the castle.

The floor was littered with James' notes on the Animagus transformation. He was currently explaining the concepts to his two friends. As much as Sirius was good at Transfiguration, there was no denying that James was a prodigy in the subject. No one in their batch could even come close to beating him at it. That's how they tended to balance their studies. James was good at Transfiguration and Ancient Runes; Sirius at Defence Against the Dark Arts and Arithmancy; Remus at Charms and History of Magic; and Peter at Potions and Herbology.

"Okay," said James, reading once more from his notes. His hazel eyes were focussed and beads of sweat trickled down his spine as he swallowed his nervousness. "We have transfigured all the major parts of our body to be familiar with our animal forms. Now, all we have to do is merge with it."

"Occlumency?" said Sirius with a blank look on his face.

"Yes."

Peter was looking very nervous. _What had he gotten himself into?_ He was not as talented as James or Sirius when it came to magic! He was quite good at Potions, but that would not help here. The Animagus transformation was more about Transfiguration and the state of mind. He had yet to completely finish the human transfiguration on his body. He watched curiously yet morosely as his two best friends sat down on the hard floor and closed their eyes.

Remus was beside himself with joy. Back in his second year, he had not dared to hope that he would have company on the nights of the full moon. When James had broached the subject of becoming Animagi, he had vehemently protested it. Becoming an Animagus was ridiculously dangerous without a proper instructor. Transfiguration itself was one of the most difficult branches of magic and most people did not bother with it after O.W.L.s or N.E.W.T.s simply because of how complicated and dangerous it was. But James and Sirius hadn't listened to him and had gone ahead with their plan. Now, two years later, they were here, about to transform for the first time.

Sirius' body began to change first. Jet black fur formed on his arms and face and his mouth elongated. It wasn't long before James had brown fur all over his body too. Horns were growing from his head and James seemed to wince in pain. Two uncomfortable minutes later, there was a pop, and in place of the Potter heir stood a majestic royal stag – complete with antlers.

There was another pop, and a large, shaggy black dog was growling from the other side of the room. It was a Grim.

The stag made a soft sound as it trotted around slowly. The dog was still until it finally started moving. It barked, wagging its tail.

"Wow," said Peter, looking at them in awe. Remus too was very impressed with their skill and dedication. He was also touched that they would work so hard and take such a big risk, just to help him out. Just so that he didn't have to suffer every full moon night.

Wanting to change back, the two teenage boys concentrated, imagining themselves to be human again. After a lot of effort, two minutes later, there another _pop_ , and the two boys were back in their human form.

Unfortunately, they were also buck naked.

"This is going to take some time getting used to," muttered James. "Clothes, dammit! What happened to our clothes?"

Sirius barked out a laugh. "Too bad there are no girls around, Jamie! We could have given them quite a show! We could have charged five galleons per person and made a fortune!"

The three boys laughed as James simply glared, but his mind was spinning. They had done it! They had finally become Animagi! At the age of fifteen!

Well, now all they had to do was help Peter . . . he mentally groaned. Now _that_ task was more difficult than asking Lily to go out with him.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

There was complete silence in the grounds that night. Remus Lupin was shivering once more. It was time for him to go to the Shrieking Shack for his transformation. Madam Pomfrey once more was escorting him.

"Don't worry, Mr Lupin," she said once more, her eyes warm as always. "It'll get better next month, you'll see."

Remus was quite touched by the matron's words because she always said something like this or tried to amuse him with stories to keep him distracted. They finally reached the Whomping Willow and Madam Pomfrey flicked her wand, making the tree docile. Remus quickly rushed inside the hole in the trunk and climbed up the stairs as fast as he could. He could hear the floorboards creaking but he didn't care. He would transform soon.

The clouds parted and the moonlight bathed Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. It was not the moonlight per say that affected werewolves; it was the magical effects of moonlight that did it. Everything in nature had a magical component and this was nothing different. The ambient magic that manifested itself on the night of the full moon activated the lycanthropy virus in his blood. Remus doubled over in pain as he quickly removed his clothes. His nose elongated, his feet grew bigger and he cried out as the wolf forced itself out of him.

The howl of the werewolf sent shivers down the spine of many a resident in Hogsmeade.

The wolf simply stood there on two legs, breathing deeply. Suddenly, its ears twitched as it heard something. The door to the room opened, and a large black dog stepped inside. A small rat crawled inside too, squeaking in fright. Then a large stag entered the room, fixing its hazel eyes on the werewolf.

For a few moments, the animals simply stared at the wolf before it began growling at the stag. After all, deer was a form of food for wolves.

The stag, having expected this, used its antlers to push the werewolf away as the dog growled, trying to make it bow into submission. The two creatures circled the werewolf in a weird sort of power play. Every time the werewolf would try to attack the stag, they would push the creature back.

After more than ten minutes, the werewolf paused as it smelled the creatures. The rat was still squeaking in fright but it paid no attention to the annoyance. The werewolf smelled the dog and stag, who were both very still.

Finally, the werewolf howled once more as it recognised its pack. The dog barked happily as it wagged its tail and the stag's ears twitched. They all began chasing each other playfully; anything to keep the werewolf distracted.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _AN:_** ** _How many guessed that I would make Dorea an Unspeakable? I did the same in two of my other stories as well, so if you did, Kudos to you! There might be James Bond themes thrown in here and there in later chapters. Dorea will seem like Judi Dench playing M. But the question is – who's going to be James Bond? Any guesses?_**


	5. Snape and the Werewolf

**_Chapter 5 – Snape and the Werewolf_**

"AND POTTER SCORES THE WINNING GOAL!" shouted Fabian Prewett. "REGULUS BLACK CATCHES THE SNITCH BUT GRYFFINDOR WINS!"

It was the first game of the season, once more between Gryffindor and Slytherin. The rivalry between the two Houses was now more oppressive than ever. The animosity had always existed since the time of the Founders, but it had never been this bad. The reason, of course, was because of the self-declared Dark Lord and so-called Heir of Salazar Slytherin – Lord Voldemort.

Or as people fearfully called him – You-Know-Who.

That animosity was also the reason why the Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were all jumping around in joy at Slytherin's failure. Slytherin's heir might be terrorizing people outside, but inside the school, they had just been crushed by James Potter and his team.

"We won! We won!" yelled Marlene, jumping around in joy as she hugged Lily.

But Lily's eyes were glued to the Quidditch pitch where she saw James and Sirius (who had been playing as one of two Beaters since last year) landed on the ground, fist-pumping each other. James, as usual, ruffled his messy hair, making it even messier than before and he seemed to be searching the stands for something – or someone.

Knowing who he was looking for, Lily dragged her friends away from the pitch and back to the castle. They were almost there when they heard a voice.

" _OY!_ Evans! Wait up!"

Marlene, Alice and Mary snickered in amusement as Lily groaned. She turned around and saw James Potter grinning in front of her, a rosy glow on his cheeks due to the game. His tight Quidditch gear did more to enhance his body than the uniform he wore every day. Lily couldn't control the red tint that formed on her face and neck.

"Potter," sighed Lily. "Congratulations on winning the game."

James grinned cheekily. "Thanks, beautiful. I couldn't have done it without you cheering for me."

"I was cheering for the _team,_ you oaf, not _you_."

"Oooh," said Sirius with relish. "That was quite a burn, Prongsie."

James was not fazed. Lily felt her frustration mounting. Her friends were giggling behind her and that certainly didn't help.

"We won the game, Lily," said James, pouting at her. "Don't I deserve a reward for Gryffindor's victory? You know, a little compensation for being such an awesome captain?"

Lily caught sight of one of her classmates – a fifth year Ravenclaw boy walking by, laughing with his friends. Her mind went into overdrive as she developed a plan.

"Really, what is that you want, James?" flirted Lily coyly, playing with her hair.

James' eyes lit up with happiness as he flashed his famous lopsided grin. "How about a kiss?" he asked daringly.

Lily acted as though she was considering it. She kept staring at him and no matter how much she hated to admit it, James always got under her skin, no matter how arrogant and annoying he was.

 _Bloody adorable, lovesick fool,_ she thought in fond exasperation. _He's going to be the death of me._

"Alright," she said finally. James' jaw dropped in shock and even Sirius' eyes were wide as saucers.

Lily never saw Severus Snape watching from the shadows, nearly ready to cast the Killing Curse on James.

James, however, immediately closed his eyes and leaned down. Lily was quick to act as she cast a silencing charm around him.

"Archie, can you please help me out?" she whispered, grabbing the younger boy's shirt and pulling him closer. "Just kiss him!"

Archie Turner saw James leaning forward, lips puckered, and he couldn't help but snicker. He whispered, "I owe you one, Evans, _"_ to Lily before he cupped James' face and kissed him full on the mouth.

Everyone watching was still roaring with laughter as James broke away from the kiss several seconds later, his eyes wide, shock still present on his face, spluttering incoherently. He saw his classmate Archie standing in front of him, grinning like a loon; Lily was a few feet away, laughing hysterically.

"Archie!" said James disbelievingly. "You _know_ that I'm not gay!"

"You're not?" asked Archie with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "I thought you and Black were –"

"WHAT?" cried James and Sirius.

This was even better than she had expected. Lily winked at James flirtatiously, the latter who was still spluttering behind her, and walked away with her friends.

Snape, however, was seething. Someone tapped him on the shoulder and he saw his friends Mulciber, Avery and Macnair standing next to him.

"Come on, Severus," said Avery loftily. "What are you doing staring at blood-traitors and Mudbloods? Let's head back to the common room."

Snape threw one more glare at James Potter as he followed them inside the castle.

He had to eliminate the threat that was Potter. Potter and Lily, no matter how much they fought, were becoming closer. He was not blind to their flirtatious demeanour. The very thought of Lily falling in love with Potter was enough to make him feel sick. How to neutralize the threat?

What was Potter's biggest weakness?

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 _DEATH EATERS STRIKE AGAIN!_

 _Three more Muggleborn families killed!_

James put down the newspaper as he observed the faces of everyone in the Great Hall. His eyes narrowed slightly when he saw Professor Dumbledore looking very grave and whispering to McGonagall. Many other students in the hall looked frightened. There were many who had one or both parents for Muggleborns, so they were naturally scared.

No one wanted to admit it, but there was a war going on in Magical Britain.

"More deaths?"

James snapped out of his musings when Lily sat down opposite to him. He grimaced as he passed her the newspaper. Her knuckles tightened when she read the news.

"Why isn't the Ministry doing anything about this?" she whispered furiously.

James let out a bitter laugh. "It would help if they knew _who_ these people were, Lily. We don't know who this Voldemort person is. He has massacred so many villages now that people are terrified to even utter his name! These Death Eaters come in the dead of the night and kill the parents of Muggleborns in their sleep. Then they fire that mark in the sky and take off. Since it's not a wizard populated area, we don't have the necessary magical technology to identify where the attack is taking place. It takes a few minutes for our sensors to register the attack, and that's all the time they need. I have heard that the Death Eaters cast wards around the area to ensure that they aren't detected. Even then, the Aurors once managed to track them down, but just when they were about to catch these masked morons, Voldemort turned up."

James paused. "Out of a group of more than twenty Aurors, only one survived, and that was because Head Auror Moody is bloody brilliant. It was a _massacre_! Nothing seemed to get past this guy! It's like he's not human! I doubt even Dumbledore could go up against twenty Aurors at once and come out unscratched!"

Lily swallowed as she looked at the picture of the Dark Mark that was shown in the _Daily Prophet_.

"There is also the fact that Voldemort has support in the form of powerful, influential families," said James after a pregnant pause. "I'm part of that social circle and trust me; we are currently a country torn by war."

Lily buried her face in her left hand. How was she to survive? What about her parents and sister? Suddenly, she felt a large, warm hand take hers, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Lily," said James softly. "Nothing will happen to you. You're safe here, I promise."

She tried to smile, but couldn't as tears welled in her eyes. Wiping her tears away, she extracted her hand from James' grasp, gave him a kind smile and walked away.

James sighed in frustration just as his eyes met a pair of cold black orbs. Snape was glaring at him hatefully. Well, that was nothing new. Maybe he should be prepared for yet another encounter today. After all, it had nearly been a week since he and Snape had exchanged curses.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Sirius was still chuckling at the latest prank he and the Marauders had pulled. It was the last day before the winter holidays were to start. People all around him were screaming as they covered their noses with their uniforms. The older years had applied bubblehead charms on themselves, but the rest couldn't avoid the stink caused by the dung bombs.

Just as he turned a corner, he saw Snape blocking his path, smirking at him triumphantly. The very sight of the greasy haired kid was enough to make Sirius furious. Just yesterday, he had seen Snape whispering things to Regulus and if there was one thing that irked him more than anything, it was if someone was messing with his little brother.

"Snape," said Sirius through gritted teeth. "Good that you're here. This is your first and last warning. Stay away from my brother or I swear in the name of Mother Magic, you won't like the consequences."

Snape smirked. It hadn't taken him too long to figure out how to break Potter. His weakness was his little friends and that was where he was going to strike. Sirius Black was the first victim, and Remus Lupin was the second. It was such a stroke of genius on his part that he had come up with a plan to neutralize them both at the same time.

"If Regulus wants me to be his friend, Black, you cannot stop him," said Snape silkily. "He, unlike you, certainly aspires to be a great wizard. Why, I heard that Lucius Malfoy is quite fond of him. The two of them are always having long conversations in the Slytherin common room – about certain topics."

Sirius was breathing heavily now. He had tried his best to keep Regulus away from this Death Eater madness but with his brother down in the dungeons – in the presence of Lucius Malfoy . . .

Maybe it was time to involve their father.

Sirius flicked his wand out of his holster and pointed it right at Snape's chest. "Stay away from Regulus," he said in a low voice. "Or you will see exactly why the Blacks are feared so."

Snape simply smirked as he observed the Black heir through his oily hair. "Yes, Regulus Black is protected. But what about your werewolf friend – Lupin?"

That was enough to make Sirius freeze in his tracks, but he calmly looked at Snape through thick lashes. "I have no idea what you're talking about," he lied.

"Lupin falls ill once a month on the full moon. His boggart was a moon. He disappears few days a month around the full moon and everyone thinks he is sick. We can hear a werewolf howling on the night of the full moon every month. What's more, I have seen you and Potter sneaking out during the same time. Going for a midnight stroll, are we? To the Whomping Willow, perhaps?"

Sirius' hands were shaking with anger and his eyes were slits of fury, but Snape was not done. "What will happen if everyone in the castle were to find out about his condition?" he smirked. "Or their parents? The Ministry would be forced to step in. Maybe they would even put him down. I hear that's what the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures is for. They have a lethal looking axe. But if they don't want to kill Lupin, I'll surely be happy to do the deed myself. Who's going to listen to you, especially if Lupin is a threat to the students? You never know . . . I might have already penned a letter the Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. They might be on their way here."

Sirius stepped close to Snape. He was boiling mad at this point and all his frustration poured out of him. "Is that so?" he whispered dangerously, his eyes glinting. "If you're so interested to see a full grown werewolf, why don't you come to the Whomping Willow later tonight, Snivellus? You'll get your proof and maybe even have us expelled in the process. Just press the knot at the base of the tree and it will be rendered docile." When Snape didn't answer, he sneered, "No? Too much of coward, eh, Snivellus? That's what I thought. Don't bluff in front of me. The head of a Ministry department receiving a letter from the likes of _you_? Yeah right!"

Throwing one last haughty look over his shoulder, Sirius turned away and walked towards Gryffindor Tower. Snape, however, had a predatory smile on his face.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

James and Sirius were huddled under James' invisibility cloak. Peter was already in his Animagus form, scurrying about as they neared the Whomping Willow.

"Padfoot," whispered James, addressing him by their new Marauder nickname. "You've been quiet all morning. What's up, mate?"

"Nothing," replied Sirius with a grimace. "I just have a lot on my mind. I had an encounter with Snape today and I'm worried."

James stopped moving. "What happened?" he demanded.

Sirius sighed as he told his cousin everything that had happened that morning. By the end of the story, James was not impressed.

"Padfoot, I can't believe that you told him how to get past the tree's defences," hissed James.

Sirius scoffed. "You're too trustful of such ridiculous defences, Prongs. If you think the Whomping Willow is a great defence, then you've gone bonkers. If Dumbledore honestly wanted to protect the students from a bloody werewolf, he would have put intent based wards around the tree. He would have drawn an age line after keying Remus into the enchantment. There are so many, many different ways he could have done it. Besides –"

" _NO!_ "

Sirius didn't have time to react to the scream of horror as James pushed him to the ground, untangled himself from the Invisibility Cloak and rushed towards the Whomping Willow that was still several dozen feet away. Sirius groaned in pain, clutching the cloak firmly when he saw, much to his horror, Snape entering the tunnel.

 _Is Snape really that desperate to kill Remus and have us expelled that he would risk his life like this?_

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Severus Snape smirked as he levitated a stick and touched the knot at the base of the tree. The branches of the Whomping Willow stopped moving at once and he quietly entered the tunnel. He was carrying a wizarding camera he had borrowed from Avery. He was hoping to take a picture of Lupin transforming tonight. Once that was done, he would take pictures of Potter and Black and have them expelled for their involvement.

Once Potter was out of the picture, Lily would be his. There would be no competition.

He could hear Lupin crying out in pain and he sneered at the pathetic creature. He held his camera in front of him; he was nearly there. He could see the shadow of the werewolf from his position. Just a little further . . .

Suddenly, he was grabbed from behind as a Body-Blind Curse was placed on him. He was frozen and completely helpless, and at that moment, he saw the terrifying face of the werewolf at the threshold. It howled.

Snape felt warm urine trickle down his leg as he caught sight of the monster. The person who had bound him was quickly dragging him away, firing spells at the werewolf to keep it at bay. Finally, they were out of the tunnel that had the entrance at the base of the Whomping Willow. The other boy flicked his wand and jammed the tunnel close. The werewolf was desperately trying to escape to feed on human flesh but it was trapped.

He felt himself be levitated to an upright position as the defences of the Whomping Willow activated. That was when he caught sight of the person who had saved him.

It was James Potter.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

The light in the headmaster's office was dim. Albus Dumbledore was standing near the window, looking at the beautiful grounds outside the castle.

"Professor Dumbledore?"

The aged headmaster turned back to his students. Fifteen-year-old James Potter and Sirius Black were looking worse for wear, but they were alert. Both their faces were expressionless, quite a contrast to the incident that had taken place just an hour ago.

A werewolf howled in the background, bringing Dumbledore to the present.

"Mr Potter, may I ask what you were doing outside Gryffindor Tower at one in the morning?"

James took a deep breath. "I know it was against the rules, sir," he said quietly. "But Sirius and I were worried about Remus. We knew about his condition and we just wanted to ensure that he was safe on such nights. We were sitting at a safe distance away from the Whomping Willow. Remus never knew . . . we started doing this just last month. Nothing happened and everything was peaceful the last time, but tonight . . ."

Dumbledore looked at the Potter scion with piercing blue eyes. "And what of the incident with Mr Snape?"

"I can answer that, Professor," injected Sirius softly. "You see, Snape has this vendetta against us. We have fought since the time we came to Hogwarts. Today – well, I guess it's yesterday morning, after Defence class, I was walking back to Gryffindor Tower when Snape stopped me and told me about him having figured out about Remus' condition. He threatened to write to the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures and even _volunteered_ to kill Remus himself. Well, I got angry and I slipped out about how to get past the Whomping Willow's defences. I _never_ expected him to go looking for a fully transformed werewolf!"

"He had a camera in his hand, Professor Dumbledore," continued James. "Had he succeeded, Remus would have been expelled and maybe even executed. When I saw Snape entering the tunnel, I ran after him. I knew that he would fight back if I just dragged him out, so I cast a Body-Blind curse on him and pulled him out. My spells were enough to keep Remus at bay long enough for us to escape through the tunnel. I sealed it and – well – you found us when we were returning to the castle."

James felt a Legilimency probe but he battered it away at once. Dumbledore did not look surprised. "As much as I am pleased by your loyalty to your friend and your courage in saving Mr Snape, I cannot ignore what has happened," said Dumbledore gravely. "You shall both receive a month's worth of detention with Mr Filch. Am I clear?"

"Yes sir," they chorused.

"Good," he said softly. "Off you go."

Muttering a muffled good night, the two boys left the headmaster's office and returned to Gryffindor Tower. Dumbledore exhaled heavily as he walked towards the hospital wing. Any other person in his shoes would have probably expelled all three boys, but he couldn't do that. Not with the war that was brewing outside. Besides, it was _his_ fault for bringing a werewolf into Hogwarts in the first place.

"Severus?" asked Dumbledore quietly. "How are you feeling?"

Snape was sitting on the bed in the hospital wing, having been force-fed the Draught of Peace. His mind was more relaxed, but the anger in his gut had not disappeared.

"Have Potter and Black been expelled, Professor?" said Snape hopefully.

Dumbledore simply raised his eyebrows. "I'm afraid not, Mr Snape. They have, however, been awarded a month's worth of detention for being out of bounds."

"That's it?" whispered Snape angrily. "They tried to _kill_ me!"

"My dear boy, if they tried to kill you, then why would Mr Potter have risked his life to save yours?" asked Dumbledore in bewilderment. "I have heard their side of the story and it seems like a misunderstanding."

"It was not a misunderstanding, it was attempted _murder_!"

"Calm yourself, Severus," said Dumbledore as he took a seat. He observed the boy through his half-moon spectacles. "You deliberately went over to the Shrieking Shack to take pictures of Mr Lupin, did you not?"

"I was just trying to do the right thing, Headmaster," said Snape. "But Black deliberately tried to get me killed. He should be expelled or arrested!"

"My dear boy, think reasonably!" said Dumbledore in exasperation. "We are talking about James Potter and Sirius Black. Do you think you or I alone have the power to expel them? Both of them come from very influential families and –"

"It always comes back to that, doesn't it?" spat Snape.

Dumbledore smiled sympathetically. "I understand your frustration, but I cannot allow Mr Lupin's condition to be made public. Your enmity with Mr Potter and Mr Black is not my concern, but I am responsible for Mr Lupin. The secret stays, is that clear?"

"Yes sir," said Snape curtly. He was not a fool to turn down an order by someone as powerful as Albus Dumbledore.

"You, however, shall receive no punishment," continued the Headmaster. "But do try to keep your hatred for your classmates in check, Severus. Had Mr Potter not saved you, I shudder to think what might have happened. Life is too short for us to keep such petty grudges, especially during a time of war. If you ever need me, my door is always open, my boy. Good night."

Snape glared at Dumbledore's retreating back. Just as he had expected, the old man had protected Potter and Black from being expelled.

His clenched his fists. James Potter had saved him from certain death.

"I hate you, Potter," he whispered in a low voice. "I _hate_ you."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Lily walked silently as her friend ranted and raved about their crumbling friendship. She had to sneak out during lunch so that her friends wouldn't notice her talking to Severus. Had they known, they would have followed her, just to keep an eye on things.

"I thought we were friends?" said Snape. " _Best friends_?"

"We are, Sev, but that doesn't mean I can hang around with your so-called friends either. Do you honestly think I can get along with them? How are you friends with Avery and Mulciber? _Mulciber?_ What do you see in him? He's so creepy! Do you know what he tried to do to Mary Macdonald the other day?"

Lily took a deep breath to reign in her anger as she leaned against a tree. She looked at his agitated, sallow face.

"That was nothing," said Snape dismissively. "It was a laugh, that's all –"

"You think that was a laugh?" whispered Lily dangerous, her green eyes burning with fury. "You think my best friend being forced to stay in the hospital wing for two days after being attacked by that creep is a _laugh_? _That_ , Severus, was dark magic! Magic that is borderline illegal!"

Snape's face turned an angry shade of red. "What about all the stuff Potter and his mates get up to?" he demanded. He seemed to unable to hold his resentment as his breathing became ragged.

"What does Potter have anything to do with this?" asked Lily, her eyebrows raised.

"What about all those stupid pranks they pull? They do it to random people in the corridors!"

Lily kept her silence. While she did not like James' tendency to prank random people, she did have to admit that none of his pranks was dangerous. Embarrassing yes, but dangerous, no.

"And haven't you noticed how they sneak around at night? And there's something weird about that Lupin fellow. Where does he keep going?"

"He's ill . . ."

"Every month on the full moon?" sneered Snape.

Lily looked at him with cold eyes as her jaw clenched. Remus was one of her friends. With both of them being prefects, they had several duties together. She had her suspicions about him being a werewolf last year but she hadn't confided her theory with anyone. Remus had never been dangerous to her and was a very sweet boy. She had put up with enough bigotry at school over the past four years to know that she didn't want others to go through the same.

How shallow was Severus, truly?

"Why are you so obsessed with Potter and his gang anyway?" snapped Lily. "Why do you _care_ what they do at night?"

"I'm just trying to show you that he's not as great as people make him out to be!" cried Snape vehemently.

"You're being quite ungrateful, you know," said Lily in a low voice. "I heard what happened the other night. You were sneaking around near the Whomping Willow and James saved you from whatever was down there."

Snape's whole face contorted. That she had heard about Potter saving him was one thing but calling Potter by his _first name_? Where Lily and Potter _friends_?

"Saved? _Saved?_ " he spluttered, his face writ with anger. "If you must know, Potter was saving his own arse. They nearly got me killed! The only reason they were not expelled and sent to Azkaban is because they're purebloods and have their family's influence! You're not going to – I won't let you – let you –" _fall in love with him,_ he finished in his mind.

"Let me? _Let me?_ "

"I didn't mean – I just don't want to see you made a fool of – he fancies you, James Potter fancies you!" The words seemed wrenched from him against his will. "And he's not . . . everyone thinks . . . big Quidditch hero –" Snape's bitterness and dislike were rendering him incoherent, and Lily's eyebrows were travelling farther and farther up her forehead.

 _'_ _What is up with him?'_ wondered Lily. She wondered once more what really happened that night at the Whomping Willow. There were only whispers but no one knew for sure. Well, there was also the fact that Remus wasn't talking to James and Sirius, with Peter being clueless as always, but that didn't really give a hint to what had transpired that night. It looked like hers was not the only friendship that had problems. She took a deep breath. Talking to Severus these days was an exercise in patience.

"I know that James Potter is an egotistical prat," said Lily lightly. "You don't need to point that out to me, but it is also to be noted that he _isn't_ like Mulciber and Avery. Your friends' idea of humour is just plain _evil_ , Sev. I don't understand how you can stand them."

Snape didn't even hear a word after Lily had called James a prat. His whole body relaxed and he didn't even pay attention to the fact that she had used James' first name once more and had defended the boy. There was a spring in his step as they walked back to the castle.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

It was the first week back after the winter holidays and Remus was yet to speak a word to Sirius. He was cordial enough with James, but there was a thick tension in the dorm room. Peter was really confused on what to do, so he kept sticking to whomever he was closest to.

Finally, unable to take it any longer, Sirius ripped apart Remus' bed curtain and yelled, "Would you stop acting like a prat already? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me?" spat Remus. "It was you who nearly made me bite another person!"

Sirius' face hardened but he felt a hand on his shoulder. James shook his head. "Please, Remus, explain to us how this is Sirius' fault," he said curtly.

"You _invited_ Snape to the tunnel by showing him how to get there! He didn't know what to find in the tunnel! Did you think it would be a laugh to make him see a fully transformed werewolf?"

Sirius snorted as he pushed past his cousin to climb into bed. "I can't deal with this," he muttered. "Did Snape tell you that story?" At the other boy's silence, he continued, "I thought so. You'd think your own best friend would trust you more, but apparently, I was wrong."

"Padfoot, that's enough."

"Jamie, you _heard_ what he said!"

"Yes, I have excellent hearing," James said in a bland voice. "For your information, Remus, Snape was not oblivious to what he would find in the Shrieking Shack. Just that morning, he had threatened Sirius that he would write to the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures and have you executed. Coupled with what Snape was doing, poisoning Regulus' mind, Sirius snapped and told him to neutralize the tree himself and see a werewolf if he was so interested."

"He still –"

"Any enterprising student would have figured out a way to get past that stupid tree," spat Sirius. He threw a book at Remus. "Take a look, Moony, and tell me if that book doesn't give specific instructions on how to make a Whomping Willow docile. That's a Hogwarts library book. Snape could have figured it out himself!"

"Snape had a camera that night," explained James. "His plan was to take pictures of you transforming. One picture, Remus, _one picture_ would have caught the entire scene. Five to ten seconds of a regular wizarding photograph would have been enough to prove to the entire world that you are a werewolf. He did it deliberately to get you killed."

Remus was horrified.

"It so happened that we were a little late that night," said Sirius angrily. "Had we already transformed into our animal forms, Snape would have had a distracted werewolf on his hands. He could have snapped pictures of us all – and we would have been none the wiser. Or maybe he would have been too close and you might have bitten us all in the process. You would have been executed and we would have been sent to Azkaban for being unregistered Animagi. He brought the whole thing upon himself. It was his arrogance and selfishness that led to that incident. I never asked him to 'befriend' my brother. I never asked him to threaten your life. It was _his choice_ to do so. Had James not saved him that night because of Snape's ownfoolishness . . ."

That we better left unsaid. Sirius was still seething at having been blamed for this just because Snape was a bloody nosy git.

"I never doubted you, Sirius," said Peter in a squeaky voice. Sirius huffed in amusement but did not comment.

"Thanks, Wormy," he said sincerely after a while.

Remus got up from his bed and grabbed his friend in a hug. He kept apologising but Sirius had already forgiven him.

"Nothing can come between the four of us again," James said passionately. "We're the Marauders; we're family. And if we can't count on family, we can't count on anyone."

"To family!" they chorused.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _AN_** ** _: Yes, we have read about Snape's version of the incident. But what caused Sirius to make him go there in the first place? I'm not saying Sirius was not to blame; he was an idiot for revealing it. Are you telling me that Hermione figured out that Remus was a werewolf but Lily and Snape didn't? As I have said before, I am trying my best to show from different angles. I'm not sure how much I've succeeded, though, as I don't have JKR's insight into their true characters. Snape was not a good person. Even in canon, he wasn't. His 'love' for Lily doesn't make him a saint. I know people will vehemently disagree with me, but that is how I perceive it. He did join Voldemort willingly and committed crimes. He is not the Snape we know later because this is BEFORE Lily's death._**

 ** _Thank you for your reviews!_**


	6. The Unforgivable Word

**_Chapter 6 – The Unforgivable Word_**

 _British Ministry of Magic Headquarters, London_

None of the fifth year students had much time to socialize in the second term of school. Indeed, even the Marauders had kept their pranking to a minimum as they studied for their upcoming O.W.L.s. Meanwhile, the war outside was growing darker every day. There were so many deaths and disappearances that it was alarming. Minister of Magic Millicent Bagnold was not listening to sound advice.

"Millicent, we have to stop them before they can do any more damage," said Charlus Potter, trying his best to be patient. "Voldemort," he ignored her violent flinch at the name, "has started attacking many magical districts all over the country. It's only a matter of time before he turns his attention to towns like Diagon Alley and Hogsmeade."

"Charlus you are worried for nothing," said Bagnold dismissively. "The Auror Department will catch this man and his people; we have it taken care of."

The Potter patriarch pursed his lips. After the Wizengamot session, he had come directly to the Minister's office to talk some sense into the thick-headed woman.

"A contingent of twenty Aurors was not able to catch Voldemort," said Charlus, his voice frigid. "Pray tell, how they're going to do so now?"

"We have it under control," said Bagnold, in an equally cold voice. "I believe it is _my_ job to govern the country, Mr Potter, not yours."

Charlus snorted as he got up. A sneer formed on his face as he looked at the arrogant woman. "You're a fool, Millicent, if you think this madman has any aspirations for a pureblood society. You, like half the Wizengamot, are enamoured by his ideals to see what it is truly costing us. It's your job to govern the country, you say? Well, if you keep this up, with Voldemort spreading terror everywhere, it won't be long before you won't have an office left to govern. You'll be booted out before you can blink. And who is the public going to blame then?"

With a dismissive look, Charlus walked out of her office, slamming the door shut, leaving a very irate woman behind.

"Bloody foolish woman," muttered Charlus as he returned home. "Why did I even vote for her?"

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"Are you sure?"

Deputy Head Unspeakable Saul Croaker paused. "To be honest ma'am, I'm _not_ sure. The Gaunts have always claimed to have been descendants of Salazar Slytherin, the proof of which was never submitted to the Ministry. Marvolo and Morfin Gaunt were sent to Azkaban for Muggle-baiting. Ministry records indicate that Marvolo had a daughter too, but she disappeared without a trace a long time ago. The family has since been extinct."

Dorea Potter frowned. "Then how would Voldemort claim to be a descendant of Salazar? Are his followers that foolish as to believe him blindly?"

Croaker paused. "I have heard rumours that he is a Parselmouth."

The Head Unspeakable scoffed. "So?" snapped Dorea. "There are many other Parselmouths in the world, Saul. Salazar's family was hardly the only one. There were three Parselmouths in the Black family centuries ago. Does that mean we can go around claiming to be the descendants of the Founder?"

Croaker remained silent. Dorea continued. "We need to know who he is. I know that Malfoy, Lestrange, Nott, Avery and Rosier are in support of him. Unfortunately, we can't pursue them through legal means. Millicent is being – uncooperative."

"Why, did you speak to her?"

"My husband did," said Dorea, smiling in amusement. "He managed to raise her blood pressure levels so high that she destroyed her office after he left."

Croaker laughed lightly and three other Unspeakables sitting at the table tried to hide their smiles too. The Deputy Head turned to the other senior members of the department. "Any report on if we have been compromised?"

"Not yet. Voldemort has not moved close enough for the Ministry to be on alert."

"What about Hogwarts?" injected another woman. "I have heard disturbing rumours. My daughter told me that Voldemort is recruiting directly from the seventh year graduates."

"Yes, my son informed me of that as well," said Dorea darkly. "We need allies. Our department, unfortunately, is too removed from the workings of the Ministry to deal with domestic issues by ourselves. If there are more attacks, it won't be long before I receive orders from the I.C.W. to take care of the mess. I'd rather handle it now before it becomes a threat to the Statute of Secrecy, and that will become an international incident; then we'll be _bound_ to step in. Do you think Barty Crouch will work with us? Things would be smoother with the Head of the D.M.L.E. on our side. We can accomplish things a lot faster with their intelligence wing coordinating with ours."

The woman snorted. "Not likely," she sneered. "The man only cares about his position in the Ministry and if he can overthrow Millicent and any other competition by the time the next election arrives."

"Start placing spy devices in the offices of major departments," said Croaker. "That way we have an idea of what is going on. Keep them at level three; I don't want their magical signatures to be detected."

"Yes," agreed Dorea. "Also, keep an eye on the sensor net around the British Isles. If we get even a hint of where Voldemort is, I want to finish him as quickly as efficiently as possible. Coordinate with our intelligence wing and our emergency task force. I want them prepared, see to it."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Dismissed."

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

It was the day before the second last exam for the O.W.L. students. In a deserted part of the north wing of the castle, there were a group of boys who were talking in soft tones.

"The Dark Lord has plans for the magical world," said eighteen-year-old Lucius Malfoy in a silky voice. "Those of us who will join him now can hope to rise to greatness when he rules over Magical Britain."

The group had seventh years Lucius Malfoy and Rabastan Lestrange, sixth years Timothy Flint and Theodore Nott and fifth years Mulciber, Macnair, Avery, Evan Rosier and Severus Snape.

"So you're going to join the Dark Lord soon?" asked Rosier, his voice displaying the awe he felt. "Is he really that powerful as they say?"

"More than that," smirked Rabastan. "I doubt even Dumbledore can match the Dark Lord in terms of magical power and skill."

"You have two more years before you can join him, but that doesn't mean you can't make yourselves useful," said Lucius as he looked at the fifth year students. "Severus, this is your last chance to decide if we can trust you. Who will you choose – the Dark Lord or your Mudblood friend?"

Snape paused as he pondered the question. He really wanted to serve the Dark Lord. The power and knowledge he possessed about the most arcane branches of magic were unparalleled by anyone in Magical Britain. He had heard such wonderful stories of how the Dark Lord would build a new world for them, without them having to hide from the filth known as Muggles. Childhood memories resurfaced; all the times his father had tormented him for his magic, how he had beaten him up. But there was also Lily.

Well, he could keep Lily away from this. What she didn't know wouldn't hurt her. Once he was closer to the Dark Lord, he would request him to give her a chance too, to let Lily prove herself to him. She was a brilliant and powerful witch, and the Dark Lord would surely appreciate such potential. But for now, he would need to act like Lily wasn't important to him if he was going to serve in the Dark Lord's ranks.

"I don't care about that filthy little Mudblood," said Snape coldly, trying not to cringe at his own words. "The only reason I continue to talk to her is so as to taunt Potter who fancies her. She will one day be my whore and service me on her back. That's all a Mudblood like her is worth, anyway."

Anger bubbled in his gut. His face was turning an angry shade of red and he could literally feel his magic forming an aura around him.

Sirius Black was frightened by James' temper. He had never seen his friend like this before. He put his hand over James' mouth so as to prevent the irate boy from going and cursing Snape as he steered them away. Once they were in an abandoned classroom, he yanked the Invisibility Cloak away as James screamed in anger and started destroying all the old furniture in the room.

"I now know _exactly_ what I'm going to do after graduation," snarled James. "Screw Quidditch! Screw the offers I've received from Puddlemere United and the Montrose Magpies! Screw my dream of being the lead Chaser on the English National Quidditch Team! I'm going to join the Auror Department and show these buggers _why_ the Peverells are respected and revered even after two thousand years. They want bloodshed? I'll _give_ them bloodshed! I swear in the name of Lord Ignotus, I will make them _pay_!"

"I'm with you, Prongs," said Sirius softly. "If you're joining the Auror Corps two years from now, then that's what I'll do as well. Brothers till the end."

James let his shoulders slump as Sirius took him in his arms, hugging him tightly. He would have to inform his parents about this meeting. However, his blood still boiled and he craved vengeance for what Snape had said about Lily.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"That was brutal," moaned Mary Macdonald as she limped out of the Great Hall. They had just finished their Defence Against the Dark Arts exam.

"Cheer up," said Alice happily. "Think of it this way. Only one more exam to go!"

Lily threw a filthy look at her. "Only one more?" she said waspishly. "That one exam is Transfiguration. I'll probably have to study the whole night for it! It's a nightmare!"

"Do you think Potter will agree to a group study session?" asked Marlene hopefully. "He's really good at Transfiguration. You know he'll never say no to you, Lily."

The redhead groaned. "I'm too tired to listen to more of his corny pickup lines," she said tiredly. "I'm exhausted and irritable _and_ it's my time of the month! I'm having cramps and my stomach is killing me!"

The other three girls nodded in sympathy. Lily was holding her stomach in pain as they collapsed near the lake, dipping their ankles in the cool water. "Maybe I will consult Madam Pomfrey this time," she muttered. "I know that potion is addictive, but maybe this one time . . ."

"What are your plans for the summer?" asked Mary, distracting them. "Alice?" she said suggestively.

Alice blushed. "Frank and I are planning to go to a concert after the holidays start," she said softly. "Then he said he'll take me to dinner at the Pendragon Hotel."

"Oh, that is _so_ romantic," sighed Marlene, fanning herself. "Why don't I get such boyfriends?"

"It's because you change boyfriends every week," muttered Lily.

"I'll have you know, I'm waiting for the perfect guy!" said Marlene hotly.

"Yeah," snickered Mary. "Sirius Black."

The three girls burst into giggles as Marlene looked horrified. Lily was still smiling when she caught sight of something on the other side of the lake. Her smile disappeared as she saw who was being attacked.

"I can't believe that he would do something this," muttered Lily angrily as she stook up. "I never thought James would stoop so low!"

Alice, Marlene and Mary looked at the scene and frowned. "Why does she constantly put up with that jerk?" asked Mary darkly.

"I have no idea," replied Marlene. "If it were me, I would have thrown Snape's stupid friendship in the bin a long time ago."

"I have a bad feeling about this," whispered Alice. "Come on, let's follow her!"

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

James stretched in his seat as he finished his Defence Against the Dark Arts paper. He caught the eye of a girl who had been staring at him hopefully, her eyes glazed. Smirking, he winked at her, making the girl blush. He blew a kiss and the girl squeaked and hid her face. Chucking at her antics, James waited for Flitwick to summon his roll of parchment.

"Did you like Question ten, Moony?" asked Sirius, grinning as they walked out the Great Hall.

"Ah yes, describe the five ways in which you can identify a werewolf," said Remus briskly. "Excellent question!"

Wormtail looked a little worried. "I'm not sure I got all of it, though," he added in concern.

James snorted to himself impatiently. How thick was Peter, really? They ran around the Hogwarts grounds once a month with a werewolf. Sirius gave a curious look towards his best friend. From past experience, he knew that the jerky movements James displayed meant that he was deeply angry about something.

"Prongs, are you okay?" asked Sirius in a low voice.

"No," said James tightly. "I can't forget about what happened yesterday."

Sirius decided to distract him. "The paper was quite easy though. I'd be surprised if I didn't an Outstanding, if not extra credit for it."

"Me too," muttered James. The four of them sat down comfortably under a tree as they enjoyed the early afternoon sunlight. James looked ahead and to his disgust, he saw Mulciber and Avery. Shaking his head, he removed the golden snitch from his bag. The snitch struggled but zoomed around when he released it. It moved erratically but James caught it every time. His reflexes were excellent. It was slowly distracting him from the stress of the exams and the war.

"Where'd you get that?" asked Peter.

"Bought it from Quality Quidditch Supplies last winter break," said James causally as he caught the snitch once more. Peter was now drooling as he watched his friend catch the snitch. Every time James made a difficult catch, Peter would whoop and cheer. After about ten minutes, Sirius couldn't take it anymore.

"Prongs, put that away before Wormtail has an orgasm in public," said Sirius irritably.

Wormtail turned slightly pink but James chuckled. He put the snitch back in his backpack, leaned back and closed his eyes for a nap.

"Shut up, don't wake him!" hissed Sirius a few minutes later.

"Why not?" asked Remus confused.

James had opened his eyes and was now glaring hatefully at someone in the distance. He was very still and there was a murderous gleam in his eye, like a wild animal stalking its prey. "Excellent," he said softly. "Revenge is a dish best served cold. Let's see if you'd like to be _my_ whore, _Snivellus_."

"That's why," groaned Sirius.

"All right there, Snivellus?" shouted James loudly.

Snape, having expected the attack, immediately whipped his wand out, but before he could cast a spell, James' superbly aimed non-verbal disarming spell had knocked the wand out of his hand.

James was now walking forward, his face a stony mask, as he cast spell after spell at Snape, enjoying the look of embarrassment on the sallow-faced Slytherin as the various prank spells took effect.

"You're _my_ bitch today," he whispered. "How did the exam go, Snivelly?" he said loudly as people laughed. "I saw you writing the paper, you know. Your nose was practically touching your answer sheet. Oh, your evaluator is going to so pissed. How can they read your answers when there are grease marks all over, eh?"

Sirius smirked as Wormtail and others in the crowd cheered and whooped. Remus, however, was silently reading.

"You wait –" panted Snape, glaring hatefully at James. "You just wait –"

"Wait for what?" laughed James, standing close to his nemesis. "Wait for your overlord to come finish me off? Are you that much of a coward, Snape, that you can't do it yourself? Can't fight me man to man that you have to seek the help of a power-hungry wizard to settle our disputes?"

James had a haughty, aristocratic look on his face as he sneered, moving closer to Snape. "Lily will be your whore, huh?" he said dangerously, kneeling next to the younger boy so that no one could overhear, enjoying the shocked look on Snape's face. "Well, even a Knockturn Alley whore wouldn't touch you, Snape, you know why? It's because you need a penis and testicles to make love to a woman; something which you do not have, but even if you do, you don't deserve them. She's not a _toy_ , Snape, for you to play with! Lily is a wonderful person who deserves to be loved and cherished!"

Snape began shouting and screaming a variety of curses and incantations, but there was nothing he could do; his wand was ten feet away.

"Tsk, tsk," said James sardonically as he stepped back, smirking at Snape's helplessness. "Such dark curses. Those could get you locked up in Azkaban. What _have_ your parents taught you, Snivellus? No matter . . . _Scourgify_!"

Pink soap bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth, the foam gagging him, making him choke –

"Leave him ALONE!"

James turned around and saw, much to his surprise, Lily Evans standing three feet away from him, her eyes blazing with anger.

"Lily, let me explain . . ."

"I don't need to hear what you have to say, Potter," she spat, looking at him with great dislike. "How many times have I asked you to leave him alone? What has he ever done to you?"

James looked at her shrewdly. "It's the very fact that he exists, if you know what I mean . . ." he said in a low voice. Lily understood what he meant immediately. Snape was the reason James and Lily weren't friends and as an extension, romantic partners.

"What makes you think I would still date you?" hissed Lily, looking incensed. "Don't think what you're doing is funny, Potter, because it's not. I find you to be an arrogant, bullying toerag. Now leave him alone."

Lily felt guilt build up in her stomach because the look on James' face was enough to let her know that he was very deeply hurt by her words. But he recovered pretty soon. "I'm not doing this for my own amusement, Evans," he spat angrily. "Had you been there yesterday –"

"JAMES, LOOK OUT!"

Sirius' warning was the only reason James' neck wasn't severed that day. Lily gasped as a deep gash formed on the side of his face; blood was splattered everywhere, including on her own face.

"You bastard!" howled Sirius. With a flash of light, Snape was dangling in mid-air by his ankle, his wand once more having disappeared between the blades of grass. People started laughing at his lack of trousers. They could see his skinny, pallid legs and a pair of greying underpants.

Lily, who looked like she was going to smile, schooled her expression again. "Let him down, NOW!" she said furiously, swallowing her worry at the injury James had sustained.

"Tell me, Evans, do you even care about your life?" hissed James, feeling enraged, ignoring the stinging pain caused by Snape's curse. "You ignore the borderline illegal curses he casts, but can't ignore the prank spells that I cast? Have you wondered, even for a moment, why he is so obsessed with the Dark Arts? Why he hangs around with people like Mulciber and Malfoy? Look me in the eye and tell me that he will not become a Death Eater once we leave school!"

Green and hazel eyes burned with fury as they stared at the other fiercely for several seconds, trying to get the other to back down. Neither was successful. "That is my concern, James," she said curtly. "Now release him before I hex you. Or do you want to duel me?"

He simply stared at her for several moments. There was something akin to admiration on his face as they locked eyes with each other, but it was clouded by a look of intense anger and disgust.

"There you go," said James as he flicked his wand, releasing the spell, making Snape fall to the ground. "You're lucky that Evans was here for you, Snape, otherwise –"

"I don't need help from a filthy little Mudblood whore like her!"

She blinked. "Fine," said Lily coolly. She didn't seem surprised. "And I'd wash your pants if I were you, _Snivellus_."

James was once more furious. With a violent slash of his wand, more bubbles streamed from Snape's mouth as he was hoisted in the air by his ankle.

"Apologise to her, NOW!" roared James.

"Don't make him apologise when you're just as bad," shouted Lily, rounding on him.

"Lily, I would NEVER call you that!" said James heatedly. "Do you think so low of me?"

Lily now had tears in her eyes but she refused to back down. "Messing up your hair because it looks good, showing off every chance you can get, pranking people left, right and centre," she continued, knowing that the two instances were quite different. But at that moment, however, she was too hurt to care as all the frustration of the week, from the O.W.L.s to her aching body, poured out of her in the form of hateful words. "It's not a joke to hex random people constantly. You make me sick!"

"Have you forgotten, Evans, that there is a war going on outside the school? How else are we to relax and let out some steam if not by laughter? Do you want to know why I attacked him today?"

"Not interested," said Lily as she walked away, silent tears streaming down her cheeks.

" _Lily!_ Wait!"

The crowd was silent now as James took deep breaths. Remus was still reading. Peter was simply gaping at James while Sirius looked worried.

"Right," said James coldly as he looked at Snape. He looked menacing with the cut on his face and blood all over him. " _Right_. Let's see what little whore-boy is so proud of. Who wants me to vanish Snivelly's underpants?"

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

Three hours later, Marlene McKinnon was in an abandoned classroom with Sirius Black.

"I just wanted to let you know why he was so angry," said Sirius softly.

Marlene paused. "Did he really say that?"

"You heard him today, loud and clear."

She took a deep breath. "I'll tell her what you told me, but don't be surprised if she doesn't listen. She and Snape had been friends long before Hogwarts. Thought I have to say, I'm kind of happy that it's over. He's been pestering her for years now. He could have _killed_ James today."

"I know," said Sirius darkly.

Marlene paused as she looked at Sirius curiously. "You're a strange boy, Black," she said. "And a good friend."

She leaned up and kissed his cheek lightly and slipped out of the classroom. Sirius touched his cheek, which was still tingling, and smiled faintly as he too walked back to Gryffindor Tower.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not interested."

"I'm _sorry!_ "

"Save your breath."

It was nighttime. Lily was wearing pyjama pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Her arms were folded against her chest and her face was stony. They were in front of the Fat Lady's portrait.

"I only came down here because Mary told me that you were threatening to sleep here."

"I was," said Snape desperately. "I would have done. I never meant to call you a Mudblood, it just –"

"Slipped out?" said Lily coldly. There was no pity or understanding in her eyes now. Her eyes, literally the shade of the _Avada Kedavra_ curse, were glaring at him hatefully. Snape shivered slightly. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends – _you see?_ You don't even deny it! You can't wait to join Voldemort can you?"

Snape flinched at the name, but Lily was defiant. She snorted, shaking her head. "I kept trying to make amends. I forgave you when you said that Mary's injuries were a joke. I forgave you when tried to read my mind. I tried to ignore your obsession with the Dark Arts. Tell me, Severus; the cutting curse you used today . . . were you aiming it at Potter's neck?"

Snape had no answer as he struggled on the verge of speech. Lily looked at him in disgust. "I never thought you would grow up to be a murderer."

With a final look over her shoulder, she entered through the portrait hole, but Snape begged one last time. "No – listen – I didn't mean to –"

"– call me a Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth a Mudblood, Severus, so why should I be any different? After all, filthy creatures like us are only useful to spread our legs and service people like you on our backs, right? Go fuck yourself and your filthy Death Eater friends. I'm not interested."

The portrait closed behind her and Lily walked into the common room, not sparing a backward glance. Just as she was about to walk up the stairs to the girls' dormitory, she heard James calling out to her.

"Lily, please let me explain!" begged James. "I didn't do that for my own amusement, I swear."

She ignored him, her own heart having been severed in pieces. She heard him shouting apologies from the bottom of the stairs. She couldn't help but think that had James not embarrassed Severus so much, then none of this would have happened. There was a limit, and James had crossed the line. Lily entered the bathroom in her dorm. She raised her hands and a bowl automatically descended in front of her. Splashing water on her face, she quietly returned to the dorm. Sitting down on the bed, she couldn't help but shed more tears.

Marlene sat down next to her, putting a comforting arm around Lily's shoulders. "I spoke to Sirius Black," she said softly. "And I think you should hear the full story."

And so Lily listened. She listened as Marlene told her how James and Sirius had overheard the conservation between Snape and his Housemates and how Snape had _already_ called her a Mudblood before today. She listened as Marlene explained how James had destroyed an entire classroom in his anger and that was the reason he had attacked Snape today.

"He did it for you," said Marlene quietly. "For your honour. For your dignity."

Patting her friend's hand comfortingly, the blonde quietly slipped into her own bed. Lily remembered how hurt James had been when she had called him an arrogant bullying toerag. He had been fighting for her dignity.

Things had changed in a short span of time. Severus had used the unforgivable word. She couldn't ever forgive that. It wasn't because it was just a word; it was his way of thinking that showed. If she were his best friend, how could he _ever_ call her that? It was like being in Nazi Germany during the Muggle Second World War, with her as a Jew, and her best friend who supposedly cared for her joining Hitler. How could anyone expect her to forgive _that_?

Then there was James. If Lily was honest with herself, if she had the courage to truly search her heart, she knew that she reciprocated James' feelings. She had a crush on him in second year, but his annoying behaviour had taken away any chance he had in making her like him back. But he persevered. They had not become friends, but they had always been around each other, flirting constantly. Deep down, she knew that he had always cared about her and that she had always cared about him. The way he would smile at her with that lopsided grin, the way he would hold her hand, giving a gentle squeeze to reassure her that everything would be alright, the way he would look at her as though she was the most precious thing in the world to him . . .

Lily began sobbing as her emotions got the better of her. Severus had called her a Mudblood and had tarnished her dignity in front of his Death Eater friends. Not that those people ever considered people like her worthy of respect anyway. James had been a witness to it and decided to take revenge on Snape for what he had said about Lily.

But at the same time, she also realised that James' actions were just as disgusting. Publicly humiliating Severus in front of hundreds of people was something he shouldn't have done, despite what Severus had called her. But James had his faults, just like she did . . . just like Severus did.

But even with those faults, there was something deeper that made those two boys stand apart. James was a pureblood, the scion of one of the oldest families in Europe. He could have easily stayed out of the war, he could have ignored Muggleborns and lived in peace. But he hadn't done that . . . he took a stand, defending people like her who were being hunted down and slaughtered . . . no matter how cruel James had been to Severus today, there was no denying that James Potter had a heart of gold . . . and that heart wanted vengeance for the way Lily Evans had been wronged.

Her loyalty to Severus, her childhood friend, was what kept it going for five years. But how was it different? She had met Severus when she was ten, and hed met the rest of her friends at the age of eleven. Did that period of little over one year make Severus so special?

 _No_. Severus had chosen his path a long time ago. She had tried to hold on to the friendship they once shared, but apparently, it didn't matter to him. She replayed her interactions with Severus and realised that he had always been like that – since before Hogwarts. He had hated Muggles way back then. He had come to Hogwarts with more knowledge of the Dark Arts than many of the older students. She had never known about it because he had been nice to her. And when she did find out, she chose to ignore it because of their friendship.

A friendship that now lay in ruins.

It was better this way. Why should she still remain friends with him when he obviously didn't respect her? She was a Muggleborn, and that was a fact! There was nothing she could do to change it, and if Severus couldn't accept that fundamental truth, then there was no point in being friends with him. It would hurt, but the wound would heal with time.

Then there was James . . .

Her stomach clenched as she was forced to admit her feelings for him, feelings she had buried for quite some time now because of her pride. But she remembered once more the expression on the injured face of James Potter. The expression of hurt . . . she had hurt him, and she didn't know if he would ever forgive her for it.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

The term was over two days after that incident. The day after Transfiguration exam was the day the Hogwarts Express was to leave for London. Lily kept trying to search for James to talk to him, but it seemed like the Gryffindor Quidditch captain was desperate to avoid her. Finally, she gave up, but she was still quite upset.

"Cheer up, Lily," said Alice softly. "He'll come around. He loves you!"

Lily nodded slowly as they disembarked. She flicked her wand and enlarged her trunk. After ensuring that everything was ready – she couldn't perform magic during the summer, after all – she hugged her friends goodbye. She finally caught a glimpse of James, but before she could go over to talk to him, he and his parents had already stepped inside the polished Floo system and disappeared in a flash of green flames. Sighing in resignation, she pushed her trolley through the barrier, only to emerge on the Muggle side of King's Cross Station. Her parents were already waiting for her.

"Lily!" said Rosemary excitedly as she ran over to hug her daughter. "It's so good to see you again, honey. How was second term?"

"Good," said Lily, forcing a smile on her face.

"Did you do well in your exams?" asked Andrew, grinning proudly. She smiled again as the three of them got into the car. She just listened as her mother spoke about Petunia's new job and boyfriend.

"We still haven't met him," said Rosemary. "But Petunia said he may be coming home tonight for dinner."

Lily groaned. This was not going to be good. An hour later, she was back home at Privet Drive, unpacking her stuff when Petunia entered the room without knocking. She sniffed at Lily's stuff that was all over the place.

"Vernon is coming home for dinner tonight," she said in a stiff voice. "And I would appreciate it if you did not scare him away with your freakishness. I told him that you attend some weirdo boarding school. Stick to that story."

Lily snorted as Petunia slammed the door shut. How predictable, really. She took a shower to freshen up and changed into a comfortable pair and jeans and t-shirt. She was just about to come down to the living room when the doorbell rang. Rolling her eyes at her sister's insistence that everything should be perfect, she stood at the landing and watched as Petunia's boyfriend entered the house.

 _Walrus._

Lily tried to stifle her giggle when she caught sight of Vernon Dursley for the first time. The guy was huge for a twenty-year-old. Not in the height department though, because Petunia was definitely taller. But he was certainly wide; perhaps as wide as Hagrid? Not really sure. However, his girth was overshadowed by the large moustache he was sporting. He certainly looked like a walrus from her angle.

Thank Merlin James was a late bloomer. But even when his facial hair growth would accelerate later on in life, Lily was sure that James would never have such a ridiculous moustache. She preferred the clean shaven look on him. She mentally groaned. Why was she thinking about him again?

Lily could see that even her mother was having trouble controlling her amusement at the situation. "Lily, could you help me in the kitchen, please?"

"Sure, Mum," she said quickly as she entered the kitchen while Petunia and Andrew led Vernon to the living room. As soon as the door closed, both mother and daughter burst into fits of giggles.

"Now, control yourself, young lady," said Rosemary sternly but she herself was grinning. "You are not to tease her, is that clear?"

"Of course," replied Lily gleefully.

The two ladies took a plate of drinks and snacks and entered the living room.

"I studied at Smeltings," boasted Vernon. "It's a fine establishment and I was a boxer in my day!"

 _In my day? How old is this guy, truly?_

"Now I'm a salesman in a company called Grunnings," said Vernon. "It buys and sells drills, you see."

"I see," Andrew said slowly. "Ah, here they are. Vernon, this is my wife Rosemary and my youngest daughter Lily."

"It's good to finally meet you in person, dear," said Rosemary warmly. "Petunia has told us so much about you."

Lily silently nodded, knowing that Petunia wouldn't want her to speak at all. She saw Vernon look at her in surprise for a few seconds until he finally regained control of himself. She played her part as she helped her mother prepare dinner and the five of them had a somewhat uncomfortable meal (at least in her opinion), when Vernon _finally_ Vleft.

Sighing in relief, Lily quickly excused herself and went up to her room. She had barely managed to open the book on _Advanced Offensive Magic_ when the door banged open and her sister stalked in.

"What did you do to him?" screeched Petunia.

Lily frowned. "What are you babbling about?" she snapped. "I never said a word throughout dinner. What more do you want from me, Turney?"

"Did you use your freakishness on him?" said Petunia hysterically. "Well, did you?!"

Emerald green eyes turned ice cold as she realised what her sister was implying. "I never did _anything_ to your boyfriend," she said coldly. "Don't accuse me of such filthy actions. I'm not interested in him."

"I don't believe you!" hissed Petunia. "You better –"

That was as far as she got before she found Lily's wand pointed right between her eyes, the tip glowing. " _Leave – me – alone_ ," said the young witch in a frigid tone. "I'm already in a bad mood and I haven't had a good night's sleep for two weeks due to my exams. Don't push me or I'll transfigure _you_ into a walrus."

"At least I have a boyfriend," said Petunia loftily. "You're going to die an old maid, I know it!"

"And yet I'm not the one who is insecure about her boyfriend," muttered Lily under her breath. She groaned as her head hit the pillow. She missed Hogwarts already.

 ** _HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP_**

 ** _AN: Thanks for the reviews!_**


	7. Escape from the Shrew

_**CHAPTER 7**_

 _ **ESCAPE FROM THE SHREW**_

 _ **Potter Manor**_

Sixteen-year-old James Potter leaned forward on the railing, supporting his chin with his hand. He was standing in the balcony off his bedroom, enjoying the breathtaking view it afforded of the expansive grounds surrounding Potter Manor. The water in the lake glistened in the evening sunlight. Swans moved around lazily in the water. He could also spot a stag and a doe standing near the lake, drinking water. The two creatures were nuzzling each other affectionately. James smiled sadly as he watched them. It did not help his current predicament.

He stiffened suddenly when an arm wrapped around his shoulders, but relaxed almost immediately.

"What's bothering you?"

James stayed silent for several seconds. "I've fallen in love," he confessed softly.

Charlus chuckled. "That's great, Jamie! Who's the lucky girl?"

James snorted bitterly. "Her name is Lily Evans. She's the most amazing girl I have ever met. She's ... I don't know how to describe her. She's everything I could ever want in a girl and more. She's so perfect that I even find her faults to be endearing. She's beautiful, intelligent, funny, loyal, brave, passionate ..." His voice trailed off.

"Muggleborn?"

"Yes."

They stayed silent for a minute. "Is this the same girl you liked when you were twelve years old?" asked Charlus curiously.

"Uh huh. I think she actually liked me back then. But now ..."

"Why don't you tell me what happened."

James sighed in frustration as he ran his fingers through his messy black hair. "There's this guy at school named Severus Snape," he said quietly. "We met on the first train ride to Hogwarts. Sirius and I were talking about which House we would want to be in. Neither one of us wanted Slytherin because of Cousin Bella and the pureblood movement that was growing then. This was, of course, before there was an all-out war. I told Sirius that I wanted to be a Gryffindor like you."

Charlus smiled but did not comment.

"Then Snape sneered at us and made some lame arse comment and we got pissed. I never noticed his friend, but it was her; Lily. During the sorting that night, when I first saw her ... I didn't know what was happening to me, Dad! It was like my stomach was doing back flips. Whenever I used to talk to her, I made a fool out of myself and annoyed her. I do have to give her credit, she had a lot of patience for putting up with it. But at the end of first term I realised that Snape had a crush on Lily too."

Charlus whistled. "I guess that complicates matters."

James snorted. "You think? Snape and Lily were best friends and I was the outsider here. But Snape was hanging out with _that_ crowd, if you know what I mean. You have no idea how many insults she has taken in the last five years she has been at Hogwarts. But you know the best part? If you meet her today, you will never believe that she is a Muggleborn. The way she has adapted to our society is absolutely amazing! I doubt I could have done it, really. Our juniors at Hogwarts are convinced that she is wizard-raised."

"Anyway, because of Snape, I couldn't really get her attention. I don't think Lily, even now, realises that Snape has feelings for her. So thinking that would help me, I started asking her out, made a fool out of myself in the process and – well, I guess I kept bugging her so that she would notice me."

"Didn't work out as you expected, huh?"

James chuckled. "No, it didn't," he admitted. "But it got worse just two days back."

Charlus listened to his son as James explained what happened. Twenty minutes later, they were still staring at the grounds. The silence was peaceful.

"Jamie, from what you have told me, it seems like young Miss Evans does not think too highly of you pranking people," observed Charlus.

"I guess," said James morosely. "I just wanted a laugh, that's all."

"You went _way_ overboard with Snape two days ago. I never expected you be to be so cruel, James. What you did was wrong. I'm very disappointed in you."

"I know I went overboard. I ... I lost control. This was not the first time he had done something like this and what he said about Lily was the final straw. Five years of anger and frustration poured out of me. I just – _snapped_. Besides, that was not a prank, Dad. That was –"

"Revenge?"

"No. Justice. Justice for all those Muggleborns he attacked with his friends." _Justice for what he tried to do to Remus._ "Justice for what he said about Lily."

The older man looked at his young son curiously. "That's another way to look at things, I suppose," he admitted slowly. "But you have to come to terms with the fact that this girl, Lily, may never develop feelings for you."

Tears pricked the hazel eyes of the teenage boy. "But I love her," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

"I'm sorry, James," said Charlus softly. "But you cannot force someone to love you. You have to let it grow. It has to be mutual. If she has rejected your advances _so_ _many_ times –"

"But that was only because of Snape, she indirectly told me so!"

"What about what she said to you a few days ago?"

That shut him up. James deflated. Would Lily never love him back? He felt an ache in his chest as silent tears trickled down his face.

"I have a question for you," Charlus said after a pause. "If you love her, if you _truly_ love her, would you accept it if she started dating this Snape boy, despite everything he has done? Would you let her go for _her_ happiness or will you cling on to her for _your_ selfishness?"

James thought for a minute. The very thought of losing Lily made him burn on the inside. He had loved her since the time he was eleven years old. For five years he had pined for her. Could he let her go? After what happened two days ago, he probably didn't have a choice. Lily would probably never speak to him again. The image of Lily and Snape together made his stomach clench painfully. Charlus tightened his hold on his son as James' form trembled due to silent sobs. After a lot of effort, he took deep, shaky breaths.

"If that was what she wanted, I wouldn't stand in her way," answered James, his voice cracking. "I would want her to be happy."

"And _that's_ what makes you truly special," explained Charlus. "Don't sell yourself short, son. If she really is that special, you _will_ win her heart."

James snorted. "I don't see that happening anytime soon," he confessed, wiping his tears away. "Maybe I should just give up."

"Don't say that. You're not the sort to give up, James. You didn't give up when you failed before, so why do you want to give up now? Don't you remember that when you were younger, you couldn't ever throw the Quaffle through the hoop? Did you give up then? No! You persevered for years to be the best Chaser you could be, and that's the reason Puddlemere and Montrose are after you. The same concept applies here. Don't quit when you're so close to the finish line! But at the same time, you might want to deflate your head a bit so that she finds you more appealing. Get to know her as a person. Try to befriend her instead of constantly asking her out. Don't give her hints of your feelings; that may put her off. Just talk to her as a friend and learn who she truly is. You'll be surprised how much it will benefit you in the future."

James looked at his father curiously. "Is that how you and Mum got together?"

Charlus laughed. "Actually, it was your mother who chased me," he admitted sheepishly. "I was quite shy around girls. It was quite a contrast to my loud, hot-headed personality. She apparently found it adorable the way I reacted whenever she spoke to me. Don't ever say I said so, but when I first spoke to her, I found her to be scary."

"You're kidding! How can you be scared of her? Mum looks harmless!"

"She may _look_ small, but never underestimate her. There is a reason the I.C.W. chose her as the Head Unspeakable for the Britsih Department of Mysteries. Did I ever tell you what she did to Abraxas Malfoy in our sixth year?"

Father and son laughed as they re-entered James' bedroom and walked downstairs to find the third member of their family so that they could enjoy the evening together. By the next day, James was already in better spirits.

It was good to finally be home.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

 _ **12, Grimmauld Place, London**_

"No."

Silence. Regulus stood still and silent, with his eyes closed. His right fist was clenched and he felt so vulnerable without his wand.

"What did you say?" screeched Walburga.

Regulus grimaced. He desperately wished that his father would come home soon. It was the second week back home after the second term had ended and Orion Black had recently gone to France for a business venture. Walburga, knowing that she couldn't force her way with her husband around, had taken the opportunity to talk to Sirius and Regulus.

And even before that talk, she had than away both their wands.

"I will not join the Death Eaters," said Sirius coldly. "I'm sorry, Mother, but I never thought you wanted your sons to become murderers. Do you take pleasure in seeing so many corpses on the front page of the _Daily Prophet_?"

Walburga scoffed. "They're just Muggles and Mudbloods. Who cares about them? What use are they to society?"

"So you're asking me to forget all my values and bow down in front of a monster who wants to exterminate one-fifth of the country's population?" hissed Sirius. "You want me to hunt down and kill my own classmates? My roommates? Are you forgetting that they're witches and wizards too?"

"How far you've fallen," she sneered. "My son is actually a champion for those filthy Mudbloods, such a disgrace on –"

"– such a distance on the House of Black," spat Sirius bitterly. "Yes, I know. But on one day a year when I receive my report card from school and you find out that I've done quite well, you show off as though I'm your pride and joy. And the rest of the days, I'm nothing but filth who is not worthy enough to be your son. I'm sorry to say that you're not worthy enough to be my mother either."

 _SLAP!_

Regulus rushed to his brother whose right cheek was red and stinging. Walburga looked furious and Sirius looked at his mother with as much hate as he could muster. No matter how much she had tormented him over the years, she had _never_ raised her hand to him before. But she was not done. There was a flash of light and Sirius was screaming as a non-verbal torture curse was placed on him.

"Mother, please!" shouted Regulus. "If you're so insistent on it, I'll join the Dark Lord, but stop – just stop this madness."

Walburga smiled. "I knew you would understand, Regulus," she said. "You're my good son."

"Regulus, _no!_ " said Sirius angrily. "Mother, don't you _dare_ force him to join Voldemort! Have you lost your mind? How stupid are you? The man is not only killing Muggles and Muggleborns, but he is exterminating entire pureblood lines! Caradoc Dearborn is a pureblood! His entire family was wiped out!"

"They were blood-traitors!" sneered Walburga.

Sirius was horrified. "Since when did that term come into being?" he cried in exasperation. "So you say that Muggles are filth. Fine. You claim that Muggleborns are not worth it. Alright. You say halfbloods are beneath us. Okay. Then you look down upon purebloods who do not support your cause and call them blood-traitors. How many are you willing to kill for a complete pureblood society? A Hundred? Thousand? Ten thousand? A hundred thousand? Why not completely eradicate all the witches and wizards in Magical Britain? Or maybe even kill tens of millions of witches and wizards all over the world? That's what Voldemort is going to do! Have you no shame? We're your children! Not cannon fodder!"

Walburga looked at Sirius coldly. "Regulus, leave the room," she ordered.

"No!" said Regulus defiantly, glaring at his mother hatefully.

"Kreacher!"

The aged house-elf popped in front of her. "You called, Mistress?" he croaked.

"Take Regulus up to his room and do not let him out until dinner."

Kreacher grabbed the teenager and disappeared. Sirius was looking at his mother with barely concealed disgust.

"This is your last chance, Sirius," said Walburga. "Join the Dark Lord, or face my wrath."

"Never," whispered Sirius. He doubled over in pain as another torture curse impacted him. If this was bad, he wondered how infinitely worse the Cruciatus Curse would be. He found out in just a few seconds.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

"Father, you have to come back here, quickly," cried Regulus in panic. "Mother has gone _mad!_ She's torturing Sirius and forcing him to join the Death Eaters."

Orion Black's expression hardened as he looked at his son through the mirror. "I'll be there in thirty minutes, Regulus," he said and cut the connection.

The younger son the Black family paced in his large room, his nails digging into the flesh of his palms. He didn't even have his wand because his mother had seen fit to take it away! When had his mother become this insane? She certainly hadn't been like this when they were growing up!

He prayed to Merlin that his brother was alright.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

Sirius sobbed as he collapsed on his bed. His form was trembling due to the Cruciatus exposure and he couldn't control his emotions. How could his mother do that to him? All in the name of blood purity! He was her son! The child she had given birth to! Had she finally gone insane?

He remembered that while she had never been a nice woman, she did treat him well when he was a child. But when he was about eight years old, things started to go wrong ... so horribly wrong.

He needed to get out this damn house. But first, he needed his wand. Kreacher wouldn't help him. That blasted elf hated him and the feeling was mutual. But so what? There were other house-elves he could summon.

"Floppy!"

The female elf popped in front of him. "What can Floppy do for Master Sirius?"

"Floppy could you please find my wand? Mother seems to have hidden it somewhere," said Sirius desperately.

"Yes Master," said Floppy. She disappeared and after several seconds, appeared with his wand in hand.

"Thank you," he breathed. "Ahem, please find Regulus' wand too and give it to him, will you? Also, tell him I said sorry. Tell him not to worry about me and that I would be staying with family. He'll understand. That's all."

The elf bowed and disappeared. Sirius flicked his wand as he began packing all this stuff. His multi-compartment trunk opened and everything he thought he would need zoomed into the three compartments. With another flick, he it decreased in size until he could carry it in his pocket. Muttering spells under his breath, he finally got his bedroom door open.

Sirius thought he heard voices in the drawing room. Not wanting to see if it was someone else in the family, he quickly walked to the entrance hall, grabbed a pinch of Floo power and stepped inside the ornate granite fireplace.

Orion Black entered the house exactly when he heard his son saying, "Potter Manor," as Sirius disappeared in a flash of green flames.

The patriarch of the Black family pursed his lips as he moved deeper into the house. He entered the opulent drawing room, only to see his wife talking to his niece, the newly married Bellatrix Lestrange.

"Bellatrix," said Orion, startling both women. "I need to speak to my wife in private. Leave."

The new Mrs Lestrange swallowed slightly as she saw the expression on her uncle's face. It was quite scary. Not wanting to annoy the obviously irate Head of House Black, she quickly said, "Yes, Uncle Orion," and made her way to the entrance hall. Orion felt the wards register that she had Flooed back home.

"What is it, Orion?" said Walburga angrily.

Orion's knuckles tightened. Throwing one last glare at his wife, he climbed up the stairs two at a time and opened the door to Regulus' room.

"Did she use the Cruciatus Curse?" he asked his youngest without preamble.

"I don't know," muttered Regulus angrily. "She took away my wand and locked me in my room! She's gone insane!"

"I can see that," said Orion darkly. "Come with me, Regulus, I need your help."

Walking to the basement of the townhouse where the wardstone was kept, Orion carefully whispered the various passwords and pressed the necessary runes to enter. This townhouse was purchased after he and Walburga had gotten married. At that time, he had layered every brick of the house with a bevy of protective charms and enchantments, many of which were not legal. Of course, no one would dare oppose Orion Black and his father Arcturus if they wanted to live. Finally, his hard work would pay off.

He wondered what had happened to his wife. She certainly was not the woman he had married in his youth.

"The Black containment ritual," said Orion. "Ready?"

"Ready," whispered Regulus.

"Now."

Father and son began chanting as the wardstone glowed. Ten minutes later, Regulus was still chanting while Orion was busy changing the runes on the ward script. Five minutes later, they stopped, breathing heavily.

"Ahem, Father, you should know that –"

"– Sirius ran away? Yes, I know. I heard him activate the Floo when I arrived. He's at Potter Manor. I've already alerted Dorea."

Regulus nodded. "Go to your room, son," Orion said softly. "I need to talk to your mother."

Entering the drawing room once more, Orion sneered at his wife. "I never thought you would stoop so low," he spat. "Torturing your own son? Oh, how far you have fallen!"

"Don't act so mighty, Orion," snapped Walburga. "What about you? The ever-absentee father? You have no right to complain!"

"At least I never tortured my son!" thundered Orion. "You are clearly lost in the head if you were able to do that. Didn't your magic react when you tortured Sirius? I can't ever imagine such a thing happening to anyone else! You truly are a heartless bitch."

He interrupted her. "Sirius won't be coming back to this house. He's already left. Thanks to you, our oldest son, the heir of the Black family, has run away from home. But what you should know is that from this day forward, you will be confined to this house. Regulus and I have performed the containment ritual. You will not be able to step out of this house – ever. And I would strongly advice against trying. You will not be alive long enough to reach your destination."

Ignoring her scream of denial, Orion entered his study and slammed the door shut. He flicked his wand and poured himself a glass of Firewhisky. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes. What a day.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

James sat in the informal drawing room at Potter Manor as he held his best friend who was crying on his shoulder, still trembling from what had happened. Dorea was tending to his injuries as she muttered under her breath.

"Padfood, everything will be fine," said James, but his voice cracked. He looked at his parents for support but they too looked shocked at what was happening. Suddenly, they saw a patronus enter the room. It dissolved as the message seeped into Dorea's mind. She finally calmed down.

"Sirius," she said patiently. "Sirius, don't worry. We won't make you go back there. In fact, you're father has given you permission to stay here for the rest of the holidays."

"I don't care," sobbed Sirius, still not releasing his death-grip on James. "I just can't take it anymore! For so many years, he did nothing and stood by as Mother constantly berated me and put me down. Now, when I needed him the most, he wasn't there! What kind of mother tortures her son with the Cruciatus Curse?!"

Charlus took a deep breath. He was boiling mad, but he had to keep his emotions in check. From the corner of his eye, he could see that his wife was enraged too. "James, take Sirius to one of the guest bedrooms. I'll send Sally with a few specific potions. Give it to him and put him to bed. We'll talk tomorrow."

James nodded as he helped his friend get up. The two of them slowly walked up the stairs to the second floor. He led Sirius to the room next to his own. After giving him the potions, he tucked his friend in bed and quietly walked back to his room, very grateful that his family wasn't as dysfunctional as the House of Black. He may have grown up isolated and lonely, but his parents loved him unconditionally. That was infinitely better than having Walburga Black as a mother.

No one could beat Dorea Potter when it came to being a mother. No one. At least not in his mind.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

It took quite a few days for Sirius to recover from the trauma inflicted by his mother. He was quiet and morose, but after he received a mirror call from Regulus, he seemed to feel better. The three Potters tried their best to cheer him up. Charlus even bought tickets to the Puddlemere United game so that Sirius would be distracted.

Finally, Dorea decided to broach the subject now that her nephew was calm.

"Your father has locked your mother in the house," said Dorea quietly. "He's erected the Black containment ward. I assume you're familiar with the ritual?"

Sirius nodded quietly, still shocked that his father had actually done it. He knew that the entire incident would be kept secret within the family, and that there was no chance of Walburga being sent to Azkaban. Such things did not happen, as the Blacks tended to manage their own family affairs. Besides, their reputation was at stake and the name of the House of Black could not be tarnished! Hadn't he already been so hurt, Sirius would have felt nice to know that Orion Black had actually taken a stand for once instead of ignoring what was going on in his own home. He had erected the Black containment ward – a deadly piece of dark magic that was invented by one of his ancestors, a witch named Amalthea Black. If Walburga ever tried to leave Grimmauld Place, even to visit her parents and siblings at Black Manor, she would be dead within seconds. She would remain in the house until the day she died.

"Grandfather Pollux is going to hate me for this," cringed Sirius. "He and Grandmother Irma never liked me much, and I'm pretty sure Bellatrix had something to do with that. Grandfather Arcturus and Grandmother Melania treat me a lot better. At least they're genuinely fond of me."

Dorea snorted. "My brother never really got his priorities right," she said bitterly, remembering instances from her own life. _Stupid idiot._ "Don't worry about Pollux and Irma. Orion and Arcturus will take care of it. It's better that you're here, to be honest. From personal experience, I know that Black family drama can last a while."

She saw that he still looked troubled.

"No one is going to force you to join the Death Eaters, Sirius," she continued softly. "I know that Orion hasn't been the best father to you, but he does care about you and your brother. Regulus will be safe. He has a good head on his shoulders. Trust him."

"I know," said Sirius quickly. "I've never doubted Regulus, but with all those people in Slytherin poisoning his mind ..."

"That's why you have us. Do you think we would let something like that happen? Your father did consult a Healer and yes, Walburga does have a psychological condition. Otherwise she, as your mother, couldn't have tortured you like that. Her magic wouldn't have allowed it."

The teenage boy swallowed as he let her collect him in a warm hug.

"Don't worry, Sirius," said Dorea comfortingly. "I'm here for you. Uncle Charlus and James are here for you. You're part of our family."

Sirius choked as his emotions got the best of him. His parents never hugged him. Walburga had always scoffed at it, not wanting to baby him and Regulus, but this felt so good. He felt so warm and protected in her embrace and he vowed to himself that from this day forward, he would consider this woman as his mother. Not the one who had given birth to him.

"Thanks, Aunt Dorea. I love you."

"I love you too, Sirius."

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

 _ **1st September, 1971**_

 _ **Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, Sixth Year**_

Lily Evans once more bid her parents goodbye and rushed through the barrier. The rest of the holidays had been unpleasant because Petunia had done everything possible to make her life miserable. It was quite petty, really. Stealing her hair clip, stealing her shoes, stealing her makeup, loudly talking about Vernon, going on dates with Vernon, talking about how she had a boyfriend and Lily didn't, and of course, constantly saying how freaks like Lily would end up alone in life.

It was so immature. Lily wondered if she should conjure a crocodile in Petunia's room next summer so as to make her sister stop pestering her. It would certainly be effective.

Even though she had written to her friends constantly during the summer, Lily still felt lonely. More than anyone she missed the one person she didn't think she would miss at all.

She missed James. He was constantly plaguing her dreams, tantalizing her. The dreams were also becoming more steamy and hot, with her and James doing things she would never mention to anyone. But the problem was that she couldn't get James Potter out of her mind.

Lily had also promised herself that she would accept James' request to go on a date after she apologised to him. He deserved at least one chance. With that in mind, she entered the perfects' carriage and waited. After five minutes, much to her disappointment, James never came. Sighing in resignation, she walked down the magically expanded isle of the train when she ran into –

"Lily!" squeaked Alice in happiness. "I missed you!"

She couldn't help but smile as she hugged her best friend back. Marlene was grinning at her and Mary was also smiling shyly as usual.

"I missed you too," she said genuinely.

"So, where's your man?" asked Marlene, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Lily blushed as she stammered that she hadn't seen him. Just as they turned, however, Lily crashed into someone's chest.

"Oof!" she said, but strong arms wrapped around her waist to keep her from falling.

"Wow, careful there," said James in a low voice. He smiled slightly, drinking in her features, noting that she had only gotten more beautiful during the summer they had been apart.

"James," gasped Lily, her face heating up as he pulled her upright. He let go of her at once.

"Hello, ladies!" said Sirius loudly. "Never fear, for Sirius Black is here!"

"I dare you to do it," whispered Mary. "You did promise to try."

"Fine," muttered Marlene angrily. She plastered a flirty smile on her face as she moved forward and grabbed Sirius. "Hello, sexy boy," she whispered. "How're you doing?"

With that, she gave him a kiss on the lips and pinched his bum. "I can't wait for us to get to know each other," whispered Marlene in his ear because winking at him. "Come on guys, let's find a compartment."

Sirius was looking at Marlene's retreating back strangely. He was deep in thought as he looked through the various compartments, no doubt to search for his friends. James moved to follow him, but Lily held him back. He looked at her in surprise

"James, I wanted to apologise."

"For what?" frowned James.

"For what I said to you on the day of our Defence O.W.L.," said Lily quietly. "I was wrong and completely out of line. Marlene told me what happened with Severus and Malfoy. Thank you for wanting to save my dignity and I'm really sorry that I called you an arrogant toerag. That's not how I think of you at all."

James smiled and Lily felt butterflies in her stomach.

His first instinct was to flirt with her and ask her out, but James remembered his father's advice. He still didn't know if Lily even _liked_ him, let alone loved him back, so he decided to take things slow. Maybe being her friend would give him an idea of how to win her heart. His goal was to make her fall in love with him by the time they left Hogwarts. Thankfully, he still had two years for that. If she wasn't interested in him even after two years ... then James would just have to admit defeat and nurse his broken heart. He sincerely hoped it never came to that.

"I'm glad to hear that, Lily. You know that I wouldn't let anyone insult you like that and get away with it. I'm sorry too. I guess I did go overboard with Snape and I apologise for my part in wreaking your friendship with him." _Though I'm not sorry it ended_.

Lily blinked in surprise at the response. Where's the corny pick-up line? Where's the invitation to Hogsmeade? What was going on here? She watched him leave, looking confused and disappointed.

 _ **HP*A POTTER'S TRUE LOVE*HP**_

"She pinched my butt," blurted out Sirius as they finally sat down. "She called me sexy boy."

"And what's so special about that?" inquired James. "You've done a _lot_ more with girls than just get pinched in the butt!"

"Yeah, but this is Marlene MacKionnon! The Queen of Gryffindor! And _I_ was supposed to approach _her_ this year, not the other way around!"

James, Remus and Peter chuckled as they watched Sirius stare blankly into the distance, confused by Marlene's behaviour.

"I never thought the man-whore Sirius Black would freak out if a girl threw herself at him," said Remus conversationally.

"Man-whore?" said Sirius, looking horrified. He paused and shrugged. "Yeah, that sounds about right. What about you, Prongs? Evans was quite on to you!"

James shook his head. "I'm not asking her out again."

"You're giving up on her?" squeaked Peter in surprise.

"NO! But I'm not going to keep pestering her about it. I want to be her friend first and then see what happens."

Sirius already knew this, but decided to have a little fun, having been planning this moment for weeks. He cleared his throat. "The Marauder Supreme Court is being called into session for the betrayal of one Mr Prongs for violating the terms of the Marauder Constitution. He has betrayed his manliness and wussed out because he's chicken. I, Mr Padfoot, demand justice!"

James' jaw dropped in shock as tight ropes bound him.

"The prosecutor is Mr Padfoot. The adjudicator is Mr Moony."

"Mr Womtail would like to seek your permission, Your Honour, to be Mr Prongs' defence," said Peter.

"Granted," said Remus.

"But –"

"Mr Prongs, speak only through your defence attorney!" snapped Remus. "Or you will be automatically adjudicated guilty!"

James shut his mouth. Remus cleared his throat. "Your case, Mr Padfoot."

Sirius stood up gracefully and flicked his wand in an elaborate motion. The compartment they were sitting in expanded to three times its size. A large intricate 'M' appeared on the wall as Sirius began pacing.

"Your Honour," began Sirius seriously. "We, the prosecution, feel that Mr Prongs has not upheld the values of being a Marauder. We demand that he be immediately adjudicated guilty!"

"Objection!" said Peter, standing up. "The Defence wants to hear the reason for why Mr Wormtail's client, Mr Prongs, has been dragged to court!"

"Objection sustained!" ruled Remus. "Answer the question, Mr Padfoot."

"Mr Prongs has always had an unhealthy obsession with young Miss Evans –"

"Wait a minute!" cried James.

"Mr Prongs, this is your last warning!" thundered Remus. "Speak only through your attorney!"

"My apologies, Mr Moony."

"That's Your Honour to you!"

"Mr Wormtail would like to apologise for his client's rude behaviour," bowed Peter. "We request the prosecution, Mr Padfoot, to continue."

"Ahem," said Sirius, clearing his throat fashionably. "Mr Prongs' unhealthy obsession with Miss Evans –"

"Mr Wormtails raises an objection, Your Honour," said Peter. "We would like to point out that Mr Prongs truly loves Miss Evans and hence it cannot be termed as an obsession."

"Objection overruled!"

"Mr Prongs has been pining for Miss Evans for five years now," said Sirius with relish. "He has used his manliness to uphold the greatest principles of being a Marauder as he pranked and annoyed Miss Evans and used the best pick-up lines to woo her. Unfortunately –"

"Mr Wormtail would like to interrupt Mr Padfoot and request Mr Moony to remember this point raised by the prosecution that Mr Prongs has been an outstanding Marauder for five years. I submit this as 'Exhibit A.'"

James rolled his eyes.

"Accepted. Continue, Mr Padfoot."

Sirius threw a filthy look at Peter. "Now, however, Mr Prongs wants to give up his manliness and all the values of the Marauders stand for by _befriending_ Miss Evans instead of courting her. This is a violation of Section 10, subsection 5, clause 20 of the Marauder Constitution that came into effect on the 1st of September two years ago with retrospective effect. The violation for any rule in the constitution is the standard punishment."

"Mr Wormtail likes to add that his client would plead guilty for a lesser punishment."

"Wormy, what are you doing?" cried James. "I never accepted this charge in the first place!"

"You should listen to Mr Womtail, Mr Prongs," said Remus. "Your attorney knows best."

"I rest my case, Mr Moony," said Sirius, bowing mockingly.

Remus cleared his throat, adjusting his – frankly ridiculous – conjured reading glasses, as he announced, "Based on the evidence submitted to this court, I hereby adjudicate Mr Prongs guilty of treason!"

"What?" shouted James. "This is an outrage! A scandal! This is a _kangaroo court_! I _demand_ a fair trial!"

"This is the supreme court, Mr Prongs! There is no higher court. The punishment, of course, would be the standard punishment as per Section 69 of the Marauder Constitution."

"But my attorney asked for leniency!"

"The constitution only allows for one type of punishment, Mr Prongs," said Remus sharply. "And that is the standard punishment which will be executed tonight."

"Bugger," whispered James. "I'm so screwed tonight."

"If you're lucky, maybe literally," Sirius snickered, his eyes twinkling with mirth.


End file.
